Alleged police abuse at Galashiels police station

The request was partially successful.

Dear Lothian & Borders Police.

Under HM.Freedom Of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 I hear by give notice that I request from the constabulary:

A) A full statistical count of all allegations proven or unproven of abuse by officers to prisoners or other person(s) under there charge at Galasheils police station.

B) Those statistics be broken down into the abuse types of: Physical, psychological, financial, sexual or other.

Thank you.

Mr.Maclean

Dear Lothian & Borders Police.

Please can you confirm reception of this lawful request.

Mr.MacLean

Michael Traill left an annotation ()

For reference:

Many public authorities have an auto responder set up so that when a request is received a response is automatically sent so that the person knows its been received.

Lothian and Borders Police have a practice of only acknowledge receipt of requests for information if specifically asked to do so.

M

Lothian and Borders Police

Dear Mr MacLean

Thank you for your email. I can confirm that Lothian and Borders Police have received this request and a response should be with you no later than the 1st December 2010.

Yours sincerely

Gabriella Trybalska
Force Information Unit
Lothian and Borders Police

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Graeme MacLean left an annotation ()

Thank you Mr.Trail for your kind information :)

Lothian and Borders Police

Dear Mr MacLean

Thank you for your email, which has been dealt with under the terms of the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002.

Two allegations are recorded for the period from April 2009 to 30 September 2010:

1 x Oppressive Conduct: this was resolved by explanation to complainer

1 other allegation is currently under investigation. Therefore, exemption Section 34 (Investigations by Scottish public authorities and proceedings arising out of such investigations) applies at present. Until the investigation is complete, we cannot release any of the details relating to the case as to do so would undermine the integrity of the judicial process.

I trust this will be of some assistance to you. If you have any questions about the above or I can help in any other way, please do not hesitate to get in touch with me again. However, under the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002, you have the right to appeal if you are dissatisfied with the way in which we have dealt with your enquiry. This should be done within 40 working days of receiving this email. If you wish to appeal please contact Rachel Watson, Head of Force Information Unit, Lothian and Borders Police, Police Headquarters, Fettes Avenue, Edinburgh, EH4 1RB. Please note that subsequent to this internal review there is a right of appeal to the Scottish Information Commissioner, Kinburn Castle, Doubledykes Road, St Andrews, Fife, KY16 9DS.

Kind regards,

Louise Gollan
Force Information Unit
Lothian and Borders Police

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Dear Lothian & Borders Police.

Thank you for forfulling my FOIS request. I have passed this onto Jeremy Purvis MSP for his consideration.

Mr.MacLean

Dear Lothian & Borders Police.

Can you confirm if the second allegation is still exempt from HM Freedom Of Information (Scotland Act 2002 ?

Thank you.

MacLean

Lothian and Borders Police

Dear Mr McLean

Thank you for your email, which has been dealt with under the remit of the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002.

It has been decided that there will be no action as a result of the second allegation.

If you have any questions about the above or I can help in any other way, please do not hesitate to get in touch with me again. However, under the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002, you have the right to appeal if you are dissatisfied with the way in which we have dealt with your enquiry. This should be done within 40 working days of receiving this email. If you wish to appeal please contact Rachel Watson, Head of Force Information Unit, Lothian and Borders Police, Police Headquarters, Fettes Avenue, Edinburgh, EH4 1RB. Please note that subsequent to this internal review there is a right of appeal to the Scottish Information Commissioner, Kinburn Castle, Doubledykes Road, St Andrews, Fife, KY16 9DS.

Yours sincerely

Louise Gollan
Force Information Unit

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Dear Lothian & Borders Police.

Please can the force outline what type of allegation this was out of the categories of:

Physical.
Sexual
Financial.
Psychological.
Human Rights.
Others.

Thank you.

MacLean

Dear Lothian and Borders Police.

Can you please outline which type of allegation this was as per my request.

Thank you,

MacLean

Dear Lothian and Borders Police.

Can the force please outline the type of allegation made without breaching exceptions as stated in the act.

Please confirm reception of this update.

I will allow 7days for a reply from this date for a response. If a response is not given I will request an investigation by HM Information Commissioner for Scotland.

MacLean

Lothian and Borders Police

Dear Mr MacLean,

Thank you for your email which is being dealt with under the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002. Please note your request has been logged under reference number FOI/E/432 and under FOI legislation a response will be with you no later than 18th July 2011.

Kind regards,

Force Information Unit
Lothian and Borders Police.

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Lothian and Borders Police

Dear Mr MacLean

Thank you for your email, which has been dealt with under the remit of the Freedom of Information Act (Scotland) Act 2002.

I am unable to provide you with a further breakdown of information as this could lead to the identification of an individual, given the information that you have previously received i.e. the charge, the location of the incident, the date range and the case disposal, together with the question you have asked may identify individuals: information that could identify specific people is considered personal information, and is exempt from disclosure under section 38 (1)(b) of the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002.

If you have any questions about the above or I can help in any other way, please do not hesitate to get in touch with me again. However, under the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002, you have the right to appeal if you are dissatisfied with the way in which we have dealt with your enquiry. This should be done within 40 working days of receiving this email. If you wish to appeal please contact Rachel Watson, Head of Force Information Unit, Lothian and Borders Police, Police Headquarters, Fettes Avenue, Edinburgh, EH4 1RB. Please note that subsequent to this internal review there is a right of appeal to the Scottish Information Commissioner, Kinburn Castle, Doubledykes Road, St Andrews, Fife, KY16 9DS.

Yours sincerely
Louise Gollan
Force Information Unit

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Dear Lothian and Borders Police,

I have reffered this case to HM Freedom Of Information Commisioner For Scotland for his arbitration.

MacLean

Dear Lothian and Borders Police,

Please pass this on to the person who conducts Freedom of Information reviews.

To: Rachel Watson

I am writing to request an internal review of Lothian and Borders Police's handling of my FOI request 'Alleged police abuse at Galashiels police station'.Ref: FOI/E/432.

Part of this request has not been disclosed under section 38 (1)(b) of the Freedom of Information(Scotland) Act 2002.

I do not believe this exception can be justified given:

I- A full disclosure of one allegation of abuse 'oppressive conduct' and that it was its outcome (that it was resolved by explanation) was revealed.

II- The result of the second accusation was disclosed.

III- The action and explanation for this action is illogical.

If there was a legitimate concern for individual identification then the data given for the first accusation could have lead to a breach to an individual in that particular case.

If there was a legitimate concern for individual identification in the second accusation then no disclosure of the result of that accusation should have been give.

I only seek statistics and type of abuse not the accuser nor the accused.

Please may you review this case.

I understand I that it is my right to receive a response within 20 working days of reception of this request for a review.

Please confirm reception of this request.

A full history of my FOI request and all correspondence is available on the Internet at this address:
http://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/al...

Thank you,

MacLean

Dear Lothian and Borders Police,

Please may the force confirm that my appeal for an internal review has been duly forwarded to Rachael Watson.

Thank you.

MacLean

Lothian and Borders Police

Dear Mr McLean,

Thank you for your email; your request for a review has been forwarded to the reviewing officer you will hear from us in due course.

Kind regards,
Louise Gollan
Force Information Unit

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Dear Lothian and Borders Police.

Please may the force now provide me with the decision(s) reached to my internal review request made on the 02/07/2011.

Please note that the time limit set down by HM Freedom Of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 and HM Freedom Of Information Commissioner for Scotland has now expired and I understand it is my right to now receive the decision in this matter.

Thank you,

MacLean

Lothian and Borders Police

Dear Mr MacLean,

I refer to your email requesting a review of our response to your request for further detail regarding the allegations of abuse that have been made against officers working at Galashiels Police Station; and also to your more recent email chasing our response. I would note in relation to this second point that authorities have twenty working days in order to respond to a review and, therefore, your response deadline is the 1st August.

I have reviewed all the correspondence in relation to this request and note that you have already received information indicating that two allegations are recorded between April 2009 and 30 September 2010. One allegation was of Oppressive Conduct which was resolved by explanation to the complainer; the other was under investigation at the time of your first request and it has since been decided that no legal action is required in this matter.

I understand that you wish to receive further information in relation to the nature of this second allegation, and, specifically whether it fell into the categories: physical, sexual, financial, psychological, human rights, or others. Unfortunately, I must agree with my colleague that the additional information you have requested would not be appropriate to disclose on this occasion. I recognise that the public interest test in this case is a finely balanced one and I realise that you have simply requested similar information that was disclosed in relation to the Oppressive Conduct case. However, the defining difference between the two cases, is that, in the second one, no action has been taken in respect of the allegation. Whilst I accept that there is a public interest, in terms of public debate and accountability, when police officers have been found to be at fault, the arguments in releasing detailed information about allegations that have been found to be unsubstantiated are weaker.

Against this, I must balance the fact that the information you have asked for would serve to identify the officer involved particularly when you consider the relatively short time period, the number of officers based at Galashiels Police Station, and the fact that, over the entire period, there have only been two allegations and one substantiated complaint. When deciding whether information is suitable for release under the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002, I must consider both the information itself and what will already be known within the local community. Whilst I realise that this type of information may appear generic and, if the numbers were higher, the information could be released without identifying individuals; however given that the numbers are so low, it is not possible to do so on this occasion. You might be interested to know that the Scottish Information Commissioner has supported non-disclosure when statistical data is very low. This is in line with the importance of maintaining privacy; both in terms of the Data Protection Act (see final decision on release of data on leukaemia sufferers on West Coast of Scotland) and Human Rights.

In terms of your request for a review, then, I am afraid that I consider the information you have asked for to be 'significantly biographical' and to fall within the terms of personal data as set out by the Data Protection Act 1998. It is therefore exempt under section 38 (1) (b) of the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 because disclosure, in these circumstances, would be a breach of the first data protection principle related to fair processing.

If you have any questions, or if I can help in any other way, please do contact me again. However, if you remain unhappy with how we have dealt with your request, you have the right to appeal to the Information Commissioner for Scotland, whose address is: Kinburn Castle, Doubledykes Road, St Andrews, Fife, KY16 9DS.

Kind regards,
Sarah Hughes-Jones
Force Information Unit
Lothian and Borders Police

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Dear Lothian and Borders Police Constabulary,

Thank you for the decision reached by the internal review personnel, However I believe the decision to maybe wrong and may not in the interests of the public nor of justice, thus I have referred this matter to HM Freedom Of Information Commissioner for Scotland, for his arbitration.

MacLean

Graeme MacLean left an annotation ()

PUBLIC RECORD NOTE:

HM Freedom Of Information Commissioners Office have verified the request for an investigation and an investigation has been launched.

Graeme MacLean left an annotation ()

Lothian & Borders Police have issued response to me privatley and I have asked for a reveiw.

Dear Lothian and Borders Police,

Please pass this on to the person who conducts Freedom of Information reviews.

I am writing to request an internal review of Lothian and Borders Police's handling of my FOI request 'Alleged police abuse at Galashiels police station'.

The information I seek is deeply in the public intrest and the specifically geographic indefication request I believe cna not be used as the station is small and could use this for any case in peropatuity thus undermining the spirit of the act and providing an unfair advantage to the station to withold information that may in future be just as of much a public interest case.

A full history of my FOI request and all correspondence is available on the Internet at this address:
http://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/al...

Yours faithfully,

MacLean

Lothian and Borders Police

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Lothian and Borders Police

Dear Mr MacLean

Thank you for your email.

I note that you requested a review of Lothian and Borders Police's response in July 2011, which was responded to in August 2011.

If you are unsatisfied with this response, I would suggest that you contact the Information Commissioner's office: http://www.itspublicknowledge.info/YourR...

Please note however that you may now be outwith the time frame in which to request an appeal with the Information Commissioner's Office; this should normally be done within six months of receiving the reply to your request for a review.

Kind regards

Gabriella Turnbull
Force Information Unit

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