Review of West Yorkshire Police FOI

The below information has been taken from a Freedom of Information (FOI) request processed by West Yorkshire Police. The data shows a disturbing reality. It appears that not only does racism in the police service continue to exist but from the evidence provided by West Yorkshire Police (FOI Reference No: FOI-20112/256335) very little action is taken against those found guilty of racist behaviour or conduct. Below is a list of several cases published by West Yorkshire Police which clearly show that despite officers being found guilty of racist conduct they were only given written warnings or words of advice. Clearly police officers and staff are entrusted with extraordinary powers and responsibilities designed to protect society which therefore makes any racist conduct by them particularly aggravated and concerning. Please see the table below which details the number of racial behaviour related to disciplinary investigations made into police staff and officers in each of the last 5 financial years.

Year 2006/7 2007/8 2008/9 2009/10 2010/11 Rank of Officers Staff

Police Officers 21 41 23 29 26

Staff 1 3 1 3 0

Number of Officers 8

Constable Sergeant Inspector Special Constable

116 9 2 1

Examples of real cases of racism 2006/7 A staff member was arrested for racially aggravated assault in a road traffic incident. It was alleged that the staff member used a racial swear word. The complaint was made by a member of public. The outcome of the investigation was that there was no case for the staff member to answer. 2007/8 Case 1 A staff member was alleged to have sent and received inappropriate and racist text messages on a police owned mobile phone. The complaint was made by a colleague. The outcome of the investigation was that a written warning was given to the staff member. Case 2 A staff member was alleged to have used inappropriate language, which was considered to have been racist. The complaint was made by a colleague. The outcome of the investigation was that a final written warning was given to the staff member. 2008/9 A staff member was alleged to have made a racist comment towards a colleague. The complaint was made by a colleague. The outcome of the investigation was that informal advice was given to the staff member. 2009/10 Case 1 and Case 2 A staff member was alleged to have bullied and harassed colleagues; this included using racist comments. The staff member was alleged to have used a racial swear word. Two separate complaints were made by colleagues. The outcome of the investigation into the two complaints was that a verbal warning was given to the staff member. Case 3 A staff member was alleged to have used inappropriate language and behaviour, some of which was racist in nature. The staff member was alleged to have used a racial swear word. A complaint was made by a colleague. The outcome of the investigation was that a final written warning was given to the staff member.

The number of racial offences detected by disposal in 2011 by West Yorkshire Police.

Year 2011

Recorded Charge Caution PND Crime 1514 521 97 6

TIC 1

Total Detections 625

The above table shows less than a 50% detection rate for racial offences. Clearly if racism is allowed to go unchallenged within the ranks or service then detection rate for racial offences will continue to be low. There needs to be a meaningful change in policy and attitudes. JUST calls for West Yorkshire Police and WYP Authority to undertake an urgent review.

Misuse of Police Computers

More than 300 police officers and police staff were caught in the UK illegally snooping in computer records last year and 263 got away with it. Of the 178 officers disciplined for misusing the police database, only 30 were fired or resigned. One police officer, who made 658 checks on family and neighbours in Lancashire got just a final warning. For civilian staff, 146 were caught and 31 quit or were sacked. The Police National Computer database holds confidential information on criminals, victims, vehicles, drivers and property. Lawyer and data protection expert Ibrahim Hasan, said: Officers are entrusted with some very sensitive personal data. To think this trust is being abused by so many is a real disappointment to the public. And the low level of sanctions shows that police forces are not taking their data protection obligations seriously enough. Other staff were censured for misusing computers in other ways, including two civilian workers who spent too much work time looking at camping and caravanning websites

West Yorkshire Police

The Table below contains the number of Police Officers and Staff who have had cases of computer misuse proven in the last 3 years in West Yorkshire:

Financial Year 2009-2010 2010-2011 2011-2012 Total

Police OfficersPolice Staff 5 44 19 68 5 49 17 71

139

The spike in cases in 2010/11 was the result of a single proactive operation by the Professional Standards Department when it became apparent the record of a single individual was being accessed. As a result 31 police officers and 26 police staff had disciplinary action taken against them. Who was the individual that had his/her record accessed for other than police purposes that was so high or unusual that it triggered a disciplinary action against 31 police officers and 26 police staff? Was that individual informed that his/her rights had been breached by the misconduct of the officers involved? Only 5 people were dismissed out of the 139 proven cases of computer misuse. The majority received words of advice and written warnings. Officers who access computer systems for a non authorised purpose are liable to be prosecuted for the criminal offences of 'unauthorised

access' under section 1 Computer Misuse Act 1990 or obtaining or disclosing or procuring the disclosure of data for a 'non authorised purpose' under section 55 Data Protection Act 1998.