Taser use by Jason Potts (1148)
Dear Derbyshire Constabulary,
I watched today an episode of Traffic Cops featuring an incident featuring one of your employees, Traffic Officer Jason Potts (1148).
The episode is available to view here, and the incident starts at 18m40s.
https://www.my5.tv/traffic-cops/season-9...
A foot chase ensues where the suspect is pursued through the streets, all the time the suspect is attempting to get away from the Officer and makes no attempt to come towards the Officer or towards a member of the public or to threaten either.
During the chase Potts threatens "You're going to get tasered if you dont stop"
The suspect does not stop and continues to run away from the officer. Later the officer issues the threat "Stop now. Taser" and produces his taser and raises it into the 'firing' position pointed at the suspect.
The suspect complies, stops running away and allows himself to by detained by the officer. At this point the officer threatens "Do not move or you will get tasered"
When detained the officer states "You are under arrest for suspicion of theft from a motor vehicle". It is not stated that the suspect is under suspicion of carrying any offensive weapons or for violence. Later two officers were discussing the chase and they stated "He covered some fair distance"
It is my understanding that the use of tasers is only authorised where the officer or a member of the public is faced with of threatened with violence.
Indeed West Yorkshire Police guidance on taser use states "Use of the taser is one of a number of tactical options available to an officer who is faced with violence or the threat of violence. Its purpose is to temporarily incapacitate an individual in order to gain control and
neutralise the threat that they pose. It is not to be used to inflict severe pain or suffering on another in the performance or purported performance of official duties (Criminal Justice Act 1988, s.134), article 3 Human Rights Act 1998 (prohibition of torture, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment)" (https://www.westyorkshire.police.uk/site...)
Therefore it appears that this officers use of a taser is against guidance and it potentially unlawful.
Could you confirm the following:
1. Does your force allow the use of tasers in the circumstances of this case (no threat)
2. Does your force allow the threat of use of tasers in the circumstances of this case
3. Do you consider the use in this case to be lawful
4. Do you consider the threat of taser in this case to be lawful
5. Has the officer faced any discipline in relation to this case
6. Has the officer faced any legal action in relation to the case
7. It is my understanding that all taser use must result in a 'record of deployment'. Please could you provide me with this document.
8. Please could you provide a copy of your forces guidance on the use of tasers.
Yours faithfully,
Nigel Jones
Dear Mr Jones,
FREEDOM OF INFORMATION REQUEST
I write in connection with your request for information as shown below.
1. Does your force allow the use of tasers in the circumstances of this
case (no threat) 2. Does your force allow the threat of use of tasers in
the circumstances of this case 3. Do you consider the use in this case to
be lawful 4. Do you consider the threat of taser in this case to be lawful
5. Has the officer faced any discipline in relation to this case 6. Has
the officer faced any legal action in relation to the case 7. It is my
understanding that all taser use must result in a 'record of deployment'.
Please could you provide me with this document.
8. Please could you provide a copy of your forces guidance on the use of
tasers.
Please note that whilst we are required to supply the information within
20 days of receiving such a request, due to the ongoing national
Coronavirus emergency our ability to meet this deadline is significantly
reduced. Whilst we are currently unable to provide a realistic time frame
for response please be assured of our continued best efforts. We intend
to provide updates on a regular basis but again please bear with us.
Should you require further information relative to response delays the
below link will be of use:
[1]Data protection and coronavirus information.
In relation to your request there may be a fee payable for the retrieval,
collation and provision of the information you request. If this is the
case you will be informed as soon as possible (ideally within the
20-working day timescale) and your request will be suspended pending
receipt of payment. If you choose not to make payment then your request
will remain unanswered.
Some requests may also require either full or partial transference to
another public authority in order to answer your query in the fullest
possible way. Again, you will be informed if this is the case.
Should you have any further enquiries concerning this matter, please write
or contact the Freedom of Information Officer, on the telephone number
below quoting the reference number shown in the header of this e-mail.
Lydia Sinclair
Disclosure Assistant
Freedom of Information
Information Management
Derbyshire Constabulary
Butterley Hall
Ripley
Derbyshire
DE5 3RS
Tel: 0300 122 8752
E-mail: [email address]
Web: [2]https://www.derbyshire.police.uk
PLEASE NOTE: This e-mail message is intended solely for the person to whom
it is addressed and may contain information of a confidential or legally
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those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of
Derbyshire Constabulary or any other person and Derbyshire Constabulary
does not accept liability for any statement or opinion expressed. Please
be aware Derbyshire Constabulary monitors all internet e-mail activity and
content to maintain system performance and appropriate business usage.
Derbyshire Constabulary’s privacy notice can be viewed [3]Here.
References
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2. https://www.derbyshire.police.uk/
3. https://www.derbyshire.police.uk/hyg/fpn...
Dear Mr Jones,
Thank you for making a Freedom of Information request to the Derbyshire
Constabulary.
Please find attached our response.
Yours Sincerely
Lydia Sinclair
Disclosure Assistant
Freedom of Information
Information Management
Derbyshire Constabulary
Butterley Hall
Ripley
Derbyshire
DE5 3RS
Tel: 0300 122 8752
E-mail: [email address]
Web: [1]https://www.derbyshire.police.uk
PLEASE NOTE: This e-mail message is intended solely for the person to whom
it is addressed and may contain information of a confidential or legally
privileged nature which should not be disclosed. If you have received this
message in error, please notify the sender immediately and delete the
message and any attachments or copies. Any review, re-transmission,
dissemination or other use of, or taking action in reliance upon, this
message by persons or entities other than the intended recipient is
prohibited. Any views or opinions expressed in this e-mail are solely
those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of
Derbyshire Constabulary or any other person and Derbyshire Constabulary
does not accept liability for any statement or opinion expressed. Please
be aware Derbyshire Constabulary monitors all internet e-mail activity and
content to maintain system performance and appropriate business usage.
Derbyshire Constabulary’s privacy notice can be viewed [2]Here.
References
Visible links
1. https://www.derbyshire.police.uk/
2. https://www.derbyshire.police.uk/hyg/fpn...
Dear Derbyshire Constabulary,
Please pass this on to the person who conducts Freedom of Information reviews.
I am writing to request an internal review of Derbyshire Constabulary's handling of my FOI request 'Taser use by Jason Potts (1148)'.
With regards to your response to question 7. You quote a case (EA/2007/0023) that i cannot find any record of. I can find the case of Normal Ingle v Information Commisioner (EA/2016/0164), but this case does not appear to make any judgement as you have alluded it to. It merely makes a judgement in that case that 'any purpose or value behind the request is outweighed by the burden it would cause to comply'. I was asking you for a form that already exists. It would have been less of a burden for you to provide the form as is than for you to have typed out selected sections of it.
However, as you have provided paragraph 7 from somewhere which confirms that information is defined as 'information recorded in any form'. You then go on to say 'the act only gives a right to recorded information'. Whilst this is correct, you only need to provide information that you hold, i think your inclusion of that statement after the paragraph in question suggests a muddled and confused understanding of what 'information recorded in any form' actually means.
I refer you to the ICO guidance on this (https://ico.org.uk/media/for-organisatio...). The ICO state:
"12. Most documents usually contain recorded information over and above the actual wording, such as the design layout and style of writing. This means that, in most cases, the only practicable way to accurately communicate all the information to the requester is to provide a copy of the original document"
They also then go on to define what 'recorded information' actually means.
I also refer you to the Upper Tribunal decision in the case of IPSA v Information Commissioner ([2014] UKUT 33). In particular paragraph 28 which states:
"My conclusion is that the Commissioner and the First-tier Tribunal are correct in law in refusing to accept the narrower view of “information recorded” put forward by IPSA, and that there is no error of law in the careful analysis set out above". This confirms that recorded information is much more than just selected text extracted from a document, but includes the information that can be read from the document itself.
From what i can see with a simple search online, the information that a 'Use of force' form usually contains much more information than which you have supplied to me. Of course i have no idea what forms you actually use as you have not provided this. So even ignoring the legal position set out above as to what 'recorded information' defines, it appears that you have not complied with providing all of the information that i have asked for.
Given the above, i am requesting you to review your decision and to provide me with a copy of the 'use of force' form as requested. Of course you may redact any information that may be legally redacted.
I would also like to request that training is provided to the member of staff that has responded to my request as it seems clear to me that their understanding of the law is muddled in certain areas.
A full history of my FOI request and all correspondence is available on the Internet at this address: https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/t...
Yours faithfully,
Nigel Jones
Dear Mr Jones,
I acknowledge receipt of your email of 13^th October 2021, requesting that
Derbyshire Constabulary review its response to your request.
The review will be conducted in accordance to Derbyshire Constabulary’s
review procedure and whilst every effort will be made to have a response
to you within a 20-working day period due to the ongoing national
Coronavirus emergency our ability to meet this deadline is significantly
reduced. Whilst we are currently unable to provide a realistic time frame
for response please be assured of our continued best efforts. We intend to
provide updates on a regular basis but again please bear with us.
Should you require further information relative to response delays the
below link will be of use:
[1]Data protection and coronavirus information.
If you wish to discuss this matter prior to Derbyshire Constabulary’s
response please contact me on the below number.
Lydia Sinclair
Disclosure Assistant
Freedom of Information
Information Management
Derbyshire Constabulary
Butterley Hall
Ripley
Derbyshire
DE5 3RS
Tel: 0300 122 8752
E-mail: [email address]
Web: [2]https://www.derbyshire.police.uk
PLEASE NOTE: This e-mail message is intended solely for the person to whom
it is addressed and may contain information of a confidential or legally
privileged nature which should not be disclosed. If you have received this
message in error, please notify the sender immediately and delete the
message and any attachments or copies. Any review, re-transmission,
dissemination or other use of, or taking action in reliance upon, this
message by persons or entities other than the intended recipient is
prohibited. Any views or opinions expressed in this e-mail are solely
those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of
Derbyshire Constabulary or any other person and Derbyshire Constabulary
does not accept liability for any statement or opinion expressed. Please
be aware Derbyshire Constabulary monitors all internet e-mail activity and
content to maintain system performance and appropriate business usage.
Derbyshire Constabulary’s privacy notice can be viewed [3]Here.
References
Visible links
1. https://ico.org.uk/global/data-protectio...
2. https://www.derbyshire.police.uk/
3. https://www.derbyshire.police.uk/hyg/fpn...
Dear Mr Jones
Please find attached an update to your request for an internal review.
I hope the attached meets your requirements. Please accept my apologies
for my initial response.
Yours sincerely
Kevin Lea
Freedom of Information Officer[1]icon Information management logo
FOI Unit
Information Management Department
Tel: 0300 122 5487 (Internal 16200)
Mobex: 737 5152 - 07710855914
E-mail: [2][email address]
PLEASE NOTE: This e-mail message is intended solely for the person to whom
it is addressed and may contain information of a confidential or legally
privileged nature which should not be disclosed. If you have received this
message in error, please notify the sender immediately and delete the
message and any attachments or copies. Any review, re-transmission,
dissemination or other use of, or taking action in reliance upon, this
message by persons or entities other than the intended recipient is
prohibited. Any views or opinions expressed in this e-mail are solely
those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of
Derbyshire Constabulary or any other person and Derbyshire Constabulary
does not accept liability for any statement or opinion expressed. Please
be aware Derbyshire Constabulary monitors all internet e-mail activity and
content to maintain system performance and appropriate business usage.
Derbyshire Constabulary’s privacy notice can be viewed [3]Here.
References
Visible links
2. mailto:[email address]
3. https://www.derbyshire.police.uk/hyg/fpn...
Dear Derbyshire Constabulary,
Please pass this on to the person who conducts Freedom of Information reviews.
I am writing to request an internal review of Derbyshire Constabulary's handling of my FOI request 'Taser use by Jason Potts (1148)'.
Thank you for you response. However it is not in compliance with the Freedom of Information Act 2000.
Section 17(1) states:
(1)A public authority which, in relation to any request for information, is to any extent relying on a claim that any provision of Part II relating to the duty to confirm or deny is relevant to the request or on a claim that information is exempt information must, within the time for complying with section 1(1), give the applicant 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 failed to comply with 17(1)(c). You have not explained why the section 40(2) exemption applies to the information that you have redacted.
It is obvious why certain information has been redacted, such as the offenders name and address and other personal details. I have no desire for this information. However, it is less obvious as to why you have redacted such information as (but not limited to) 'Were you assaulted by the subject', 'Were you threatened with a weapon' and 'impact factors'. The information contained within those sections would be highly applicable to the overall aims of my FOI request which were to establish whether the use of taser was justified in this case.
I note that you willingly provided footage to and or allowed access to the film crew to record this incident (presumably in return for financial gain). This included putting into the public domain that the blurred out unidentifiable suspect has been suspected of criminal offences and had been arrested. This is a one sided approach to release of personal information. I do not believe the information that you have redacted would release any data into the public domain that has any more legal right to be protected than the information that you have already made available via the TV show.
The subject was not identifiable in the video. I don't believe anything in the redacted sections i have referred to would identify the suspect. If they did then it would be appropriate to only redact the words that did identify them rather than redact the whole section.
I therefore request that you release the forms in full with only the information that identifies the suspect to be redacted .
A full history of my FOI request and all correspondence is available on the Internet at this address: https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/t...
Yours faithfully,
Nigel Jones
Dear Mr Jones,
I acknowledge receipt of your email of 2^nd November 2021 requesting that
Derbyshire Constabulary review its response to your request.
The review will be conducted in accordance to Derbyshire Constabulary’s
review procedure and whilst every effort will be made to have a response
to you within a 20-working day period due to the ongoing national
Coronavirus emergency our ability to meet this deadline is significantly
reduced. Whilst we are currently unable to provide a realistic time frame
for response please be assured of our continued best efforts. We intend to
provide updates on a regular basis but again please bear with us.
Should you require further information relative to response delays the
below link will be of use:
[1]Data protection and coronavirus information.
If you wish to discuss this matter prior to Derbyshire Constabulary’s
response please contact me on the below number.
Lydia Sinclair
Disclosure Assistant
Freedom of Information
Information Management
Derbyshire Constabulary
Butterley Hall
Ripley
Derbyshire
DE5 3RS
Tel: 0300 122 8752
E-mail: [email address]
Web: [2]https://www.derbyshire.police.uk
PLEASE NOTE: This e-mail message is intended solely for the person to whom
it is addressed and may contain information of a confidential or legally
privileged nature which should not be disclosed. If you have received this
message in error, please notify the sender immediately and delete the
message and any attachments or copies. Any review, re-transmission,
dissemination or other use of, or taking action in reliance upon, this
message by persons or entities other than the intended recipient is
prohibited. Any views or opinions expressed in this e-mail are solely
those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of
Derbyshire Constabulary or any other person and Derbyshire Constabulary
does not accept liability for any statement or opinion expressed. Please
be aware Derbyshire Constabulary monitors all internet e-mail activity and
content to maintain system performance and appropriate business usage.
Derbyshire Constabulary’s privacy notice can be viewed [3]Here.
References
Visible links
1. https://ico.org.uk/global/data-protectio...
2. https://www.derbyshire.police.uk/
3. https://www.derbyshire.police.uk/hyg/fpn...
Dear Mr Jones
Please find attached a determination to your request.
Yours sincerely
Kevin Lea
Freedom of Information Officer[1]icon Information management logo
FOI Unit
Information Management Department
Tel: 0300 122 5487 (Internal 16200)
Mobex: 737 5152 - 07710855914
E-mail: [2][email address]
PLEASE NOTE: This e-mail message is intended solely for the person to whom
it is addressed and may contain information of a confidential or legally
privileged nature which should not be disclosed. If you have received this
message in error, please notify the sender immediately and delete the
message and any attachments or copies. Any review, re-transmission,
dissemination or other use of, or taking action in reliance upon, this
message by persons or entities other than the intended recipient is
prohibited. Any views or opinions expressed in this e-mail are solely
those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of
Derbyshire Constabulary or any other person and Derbyshire Constabulary
does not accept liability for any statement or opinion expressed. Please
be aware Derbyshire Constabulary monitors all internet e-mail activity and
content to maintain system performance and appropriate business usage.
Derbyshire Constabulary’s privacy notice can be viewed [3]Here.
References
Visible links
2. mailto:[email address]
3. https://www.derbyshire.police.uk/hyg/fpn...
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