Response and Information Unit
Crown Office
25 Chambers Street
Edinburgh EH1 1LA
PRIVATE AND CONFIDENTIAL
Tel: 0300 020 3000
Text Relay prefix: 18001
I Hudson
BY Email: request-490967-
xxxxxxxx@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx.xxx
Your ref:
Our ref: R018662
28 June 2018
Dear I Hudson
Thank you for your email of 13 June where you requested the following information
under the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 (FOISA):
1) How many prosecutions took place in 2017 for the use of a drone to
commit a criminal offence? These are crimes that would typically be
prosecuted using the Air Navigation Order legislation.
2) How many prosecutions took place in 2017 in total of all crimes? (This is
just to derive a percentage of drone prosecutions versus all other crime).
I should firstly explain that the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service’s case
management database is a live, operating database. It is designed to meet
our business needs in relation to the processing of cases and the information
within it is structured accordingly. We do not have a separate statistical
database, and hold only operational data needed for business purposes.
1) How many prosecutions took place in 2017 for the use of a drone to
commit a criminal offence? These are crimes that would typically be
prosecuted using the Air Navigation Order legislation.
Having looked at the Air Navigation Orders Legislation I wish to inform you that this
does not always relate to drones but also included small unmanned aircraft which
could potentially relate to drones. However due to the small numbers of these
charges reported to us we were able to check these individually and I can confirm
there were 7 charges reported in 2017, which were prosecuted that specifically
related to drones. These do not include any charges reported under any other
statutory or common law provision where a drone was used to commit an offence.
These charges could be several within one report or individual and could related to
one or more accused.
2) How many prosecutions took place in 2017 in total of all crimes? (This is
just to derive a percentage of drone prosecutions versus all other crime).
www.copfs.gov.uk
As stated above our data base is an operating database and we do not have a
separate statistical data base, therefore I am unable to provide equivalent figures
for all crimes prosecuted in 2017 and that the information you have requested is
not recorded by COPFS. Accordingly, I can therefore confirm in terms of
Section 17 of FOISA that COPFS does not hold the information you have
requested.
I can also confirm in this instance the costs of locating, retrieving and providing the
information requested would exceed the upper cost limit of £600. Under
Section 12 of FOISA public authorities are not required to comply with a
request for information if the authority estimates that the cost of complying
would exceed the upper cost limit, which is currently set at £600 by Regulations
made under Section 12.
In order to identify the all charges that were prosecuted Crown Office staff
would be required to consider individually each report submitted in relation to
charges that were prosecuted and the time taken to complete this task would
exceed the upper cost limit.
However, the information you are seeking can more effectively be obtained from the
Scottish Government Justice Department's Court Proceedings Database, which is
designed to provide statistical information. They also publish official statistics on
Prosecutions. You can contact the Scottish Government Justice Department at
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx@xxx.xxxx
If you are dissatisfied with the way in which your request has been handled, you do
have the right to ask us to review it. Your request should be made within 40 working
days of receipt of this letter and we will reply within 20 working days of receipt. If
you require a review of our decision to be carried out, please e-mail
xxx@xxxxx.xxx.xxx.xx.
The review will be undertaken by staff not involved in the original decision making
process.
If our decision is unchanged following a review and you remain dissatisfied with
this, please note that although generally under section 47(1) of FOISA there is a
right of appeal to the Scottish Information Commissioner, where the information
requested is held by the Lord Advocate as head of the systems of criminal
prosecution and investigation of deaths in Scotland, under section 48(c) no
application can be made as respects a request for review made to the Lord
Advocate. The information you have requested appears to fall into that category,
although ultimately it would be for the Commissioner to decide whether that was the
case should you refer the matter to him.
In circumstances where section 48(c) does not apply and the Commissioner
accepts an appeal, should you subsequently wish to appeal against that decision,
there is a right of appeal to the Court of Session on a point of law only.
Yours sincerely
www.copfs.gov.uk
D. Kelly
Response and Information Unit
www.copfs.gov.uk