Dismissed Police Officer

Response to this request is long overdue. By law, under all circumstances, West Midlands Police should have responded by now (details). You can complain by requesting an internal review.

Dear West Midlands Police,

It has recently been reported in the press that one of your police officers was dismissed for making racist comments about their colleagues (Braddock, Evening Standard) however, West Midlands Police have refused to disclose the identity of said officer.
The Head of Professional Standards, Detective Chief Superintendent Chris Todd, stated that: "I hope now that this outcome will give confidence to our colleagues across policing to report such behaviour knowing that they will be supported; and that it will give confidence to our communities that they can trust West Midlands Police to root out racism."
It does not give confidence that West Midlands police refuse to name racist police officers. The public have a legitimate interest in knowing the identities of these miscreants, and the current practice by West Midlands Police of withholding their identity to the wider community is an afront to open justice. My FOI relates to this case.
1. What is the full name and rank of the dismissed officer?
2. What is the sex and race of the dismissed officer?
3. What area of policing was the officer working in?
4. On what lawful basis is the identity of the police officer being withheld by West Midlands Police?
5. Whose decision was it to withhold the dismissed officer’s identity (please state their name(s) rank(s) and job title(s)).

Yours faithfully,

C. Williams

Freedom of Information,

Thankyou for your e-mail, you have contacted the Freedom of Information
Department

 

Valid FOI requests will be considered in accordance with the Freedom of
Information Act 2000 and you will receive a response, subject to the
information not being exempt or containing a reference to a third party

Although every effort will be made to ensure a response is provided within
the statutory timescale of 20 working days, due to current circumstances
delays may be unavoidable.  We apologise for any inconvenience and will
endeavour to process your request as quickly as is practicable.

 

What can I not access under FOI?

You will not be able to access information:

o about yourself. This is a [1]Subject Access Request (SAR)
o about third parties
o about your police record
o to access legal aid
o for employment purposes
o for civil proceedings
o  for insurance requests
o  in relation to police certificates for the purpose of emigration,
visas and residency

If you want to make a request on any of the above, visit our main website
to find out how:

[2]https://www.west-midlands.police.uk/abou...

 

or make contact with the `Live Chat` team on the force website who will be
able to assist you further.

[3]https://www.west-midlands.police.uk/cont...

 

Preventing crime, protecting the public and helping those in need.

[4]If it’s not 999, search WMP Online

 

This email is intended for the addressee only and may contain privileged
or confidential information. If received in error, please notify the
originator immediately. Any unauthorised use, disclosure, copying or
alteration of this email is strictly forbidden. Views or opinions
expressed in this email do not necessarily represent those of West
Midlands Police. All West Midlands Police email activity is monitored for
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responsibility is accepted by West Midlands Police for any loss or damage
arising in any way from the receipt or use of this email.

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Freedom of Information,

5 Attachments

Dear Sir / Madam

 

FOI Request Reference: 479A/20

 

Thank you for your request for information, received 10 July 2020.

 

REQUEST

 

It has recently been reported in the press that one of your police
officers was dismissed for making racist comments about their colleagues
(Braddock, Evening Standard) however, West Midlands Police have refused to
disclose the identity of said officer.

 

The Head of Professional Standards, Detective Chief Superintendent Chris
Todd, stated that: "I hope now that this outcome will give confidence to
our colleagues across policing to report such behaviour knowing that they
will be supported; and that it will give confidence to our communities
that they can trust West Midlands Police to root out racism."

 

1. What is the full name and rank of the dismissed officer?

2. What is the sex and race of the dismissed officer?

3. What area of policing was the officer working in?

4. On what lawful basis is the identity of the police officer being
withheld by West Midlands Police?

5. Whose decision was it to withhold the dismissed officer’s identity
(please state their name(s) rank(s) and job title(s)).

 

 

RESPONSE

 

1. This information is exempt by virtue of Section 40(2) – Personal
information.

 

This exemption and explanatory notes are shown here:

 

[1]https://www.app.college.police.uk/app-co...

 

2. I can confirm that the officer was Male, however information with
regard to the race of the officer is exempt by virtue of Section 40(2) –
Personal information.

 

This exemption and explanatory notes are shown here:

 

[2]https://www.app.college.police.uk/app-co...

 

3. Surveillance

 

4. The legally qualified chair, who is independent of West Midlands
Police, considered that the subject officer and others were performing a
covert role and disclosure of their identity would prevent them from
continuing in that role. The decision was made prior to the hearing taking
place and it is right that the Chair did not make any presumptions on
outcome and therefore took a decision that would also allow the subject
officer to return to work had they not been found for the gross misconduct
as they were. The presumption of innocence before any legal process is an
article 6 right that the Chair is obliged to uphold. Once the chair has
made this decision West Midlands Police are bound by that decision and
cannot reveal the identity of the officer concerned.

 

5. The Legally Qualified Chair Mr Douglas Readings.

 

 

RIGHT OF APPEAL

 

Your attention is drawn to your right to request a re-examination of your
case under West Midlands Police review procedure, which can be found at:

 

[3]http://foi.west-midlands.police.uk/revie...

 

Please note that such an appeal must be received within 40 working days of
the date of this correspondence. Any such request received after this time
will only be considered at the discretion of the FOI Unit.

 

If you require any further information, then please do not hesitate to
contact me.

 

Yours sincerely,

 

David Notley | Freedom of Information Officer
Corporate Communications | West Midlands Police

Preventing crime, protecting the public and helping those in need.

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This email is intended for the addressee only and may contain privileged
or confidential information. If received in error, please notify the
originator immediately. Any unauthorised use, disclosure, copying or
alteration of this email is strictly forbidden. Views or opinions
expressed in this email do not necessarily represent those of West
Midlands Police. All West Midlands Police email activity is monitored for
virus, racist, obscene, or otherwise inappropriate activity. No
responsibility is accepted by West Midlands Police for any loss or damage
arising in any way from the receipt or use of this email.

References

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2. https://www.app.college.police.uk/app-co...
3. http://foi.west-midlands.police.uk/revie...
4. website
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Dear West Midlands Police,

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

I am writing to request an internal review of West Midlands Police's handling of my FOI request 'Dismissed Police Officer'.

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

Yours faithfully,

C. Williams

Freedom of Information,

Thankyou for your e-mail, you have contacted the Freedom of Information
Department

 

Valid FOI requests will be considered in accordance with the Freedom of
Information Act 2000 and you will receive a response, subject to the
information not being exempt or containing a reference to a third party

Although every effort will be made to ensure a response is provided within
the statutory timescale of 20 working days, due to current circumstances
delays may be unavoidable.  We apologise for any inconvenience and will
endeavour to process your request as quickly as is practicable.

 

What can I not access under FOI?

You will not be able to access information:

o about yourself. This is a [1]Subject Access Request (SAR)
o about third parties
o about your police record
o to access legal aid
o for employment purposes
o for civil proceedings
o  for insurance requests
o  in relation to police certificates for the purpose of emigration,
visas and residency

If you want to make a request on any of the above, visit our main website
to find out how:

[2]https://www.west-midlands.police.uk/abou...

 

or make contact with the `Live Chat` team on the force website who will be
able to assist you further.

[3]https://www.west-midlands.police.uk/cont...

 

Preventing crime, protecting the public and helping those in need.

[4]If it’s not 999, search WMP Online

 

This email is intended for the addressee only and may contain privileged
or confidential information. If received in error, please notify the
originator immediately. Any unauthorised use, disclosure, copying or
alteration of this email is strictly forbidden. Views or opinions
expressed in this email do not necessarily represent those of West
Midlands Police. All West Midlands Police email activity is monitored for
virus, racist, obscene, or otherwise inappropriate activity. No
responsibility is accepted by West Midlands Police for any loss or damage
arising in any way from the receipt or use of this email.

References

Visible links
1. https://www.west-midlands.police.uk/abou...
2. https://www.west-midlands.police.uk/abou...
3. https://www.west-midlands.police.uk/cont...
4. website
https://www.west-midlands.police.uk/

Freedom of Information,

Dear C Williams

 

FOI Internal Review Reference: 538A/20

 

Thank you for your correspondence, received 24/07/2020 where you requested
West Midlands Police to review its response to your request for
information under reference number 479A/20.

 

On 10/07/20 you requested the following:

It has recently been reported in the press that one of your police
officers was dismissed for making racist comments about their colleagues
however, West Midlands Police have refused to disclose the identity of
said officer.

1. What is the full name and rank of the dismissed officer?

2. What is the sex and race of the dismissed officer?

3. What area of policing was the officer working in?

4. On what lawful basis is the identity of the police officer being
withheld by West Midlands Police?

5. Whose decision was it to withhold the dismissed officer’s identity
(please state their name(s) rank(s) and job title(s)).

The force responded on 24/07/20 under reference number 479A/20 and
provided the information requested with the exception of the name, rank
and race of the officer. This information was withheld by virtue of
Section 40(2) Personal Information  

 

REQUEST

You have requested an internal review of the force response but have not
provided a basis for the review request.

 

RESPONSE

The response has now been reviewed and the force maintains that your
request was responded to on a proper basis. Section 17 of the Freedom of
Information Act 2000 requires West Midlands Police, when refusing to
provide information (because the information is exempt) to provide the
applicant with a notice which:   (a) states that fact, (b) specifies the
exemption in question and (c) states (if that would not otherwise be
apparent) why the exemption applies.

You have been advised that the exemption applicable to the information is:

 

Section 40 (2) Personal information

This is an absolute exemption

 

Any information released as a result of a Freedom of Information request,
in effect, is being released into the public domain. Therefore, it could
subsequently be published or would have to be made available to any member
of the public if it were requested.

 

Any information that relates to an individual, or from which an individual
could be identified, constitutes personal data and to release information
that constitutes personal data into the public domain contravenes the Data
Protection Act and GDPR. You have requested the name, rank and race of a
specific officer. This information is that officer`s personal data and
they would be identified by it. Therefore it is exempt from disclosure,
the exemption that applies to this type of information is Section 40 of
the Freedom of Information Act 2000. In addition, identifying this
specific officer may also identify other individuals that are still
serving with West Midlands Police due to the nature of the misconduct and
also the large amount of information that has already been placed in the
public domain about the case.

 

The force has also advised that the subject officer and others were
performing a covert role and disclosure of their identity would prevent
them from continuing in that role. The legally qualified chair made the
decision not to name the officer and West Midlands Police are bound by
that decision.

 

I hope that this is of assistance.

 

If you are not content with the outcome of the internal review, you have
the right to apply directly to the Information Commissioner for a
decision. The Information Commissioner can be contacted at: Information
Commissioner’s Office, Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire, SK9
5AF

Please note due to Covid-19:

The ICO’s offices will be closed for the foreseeable future. They are
therefore unable to receive correspondence via post, you can instead link
to their website: [1]ico.org.uk

 

Yours sincerely,

 

Mrs R Williams

 

59614 Rebecca Williams l FOI Manager

Lloyd House l West Midlands Police

Preventing crime, protecting the public and helping those in need.

[2]If it’s not 999, search WMP Online

 

This email is intended for the addressee only and may contain privileged
or confidential information. If received in error, please notify the
originator immediately. Any unauthorised use, disclosure, copying or
alteration of this email is strictly forbidden. Views or opinions
expressed in this email do not necessarily represent those of West
Midlands Police. All West Midlands Police email activity is monitored for
virus, racist, obscene, or otherwise inappropriate activity. No
responsibility is accepted by West Midlands Police for any loss or damage
arising in any way from the receipt or use of this email.

References

Visible links
1. http://ico.org.uk/
2. website
https://www.west-midlands.police.uk/