COPFS Right to Review scheme could be improved, inspectors report
Victims of crime are not always informed of their right to have prosecution decisions reviewed, the Inspectorate of Prosecution in Scotland reports today.
Its report on the operational effectiveness of the Crown Office & Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS) Victims’ Right to Review Scheme, published with a follow-up report on the COPFS complaints handling process, identifies a number of areas where COPFS can improve the service offered.
Victims of crime or bereaved relatives have the right to seek a review of a decision by COPFS not to prosecute a criminal case, or to discontinue criminal proceedings that have begun.
Michelle Macleod, HM Chief Inspector said: "Providing reasons for such decisions is essential to retain confidence and to deliver accountability and transparency to those whose lives have been affected.
"We found the COPFS review process was robust with reviews conducted independently and thoroughly and reviewers overturning decisions where they found the initial assessment of sufficiency and/or the public interest to be incorrect or unreasonable.
"However, not all victims are notified of decisions not to prosecute. This policy has the potential, in some cases, to deny victims access to an effective remedy, in the form of a prosecution, if the decision is overturned."
Among 11 specific points the report recommends:
- working towards a system of notifying all victims of decisions not to prosecute;
- providing substantive and understandable reasons for initial decisions not to prosecute or to discontinue proceedings;
- expediting requests for a review for offences subject to time limits; and
- tailoring communication of the outcome of reviews to the needs of the individual.
These are designed to ensure the review process is thorough, effective and conducted to the highest quality, in accordance with the individual needs of the victim(s).
Ms Macleod added: "We are pleased that COPFS has implemented a substantial number of the recommendations made in our thematic report, resulting in a more user friendly complaints handling process and improvements in the quality of responses.
"However, the lack of progress on implementing systems to identify trends and to learn from complaints to drive improvements and provide a base line to measure service performance is disappointing.
"We look forward to seeing progress made in this area by the newly established Service Improvement Board."