Report – Police Scotland – PIRC/01214/25 & PIRC/01220/25
The Complaints
The complaint in this case arose after the applicant reported domestic related offences to the police. The applicant was dissatisfied that an Inspector took no further action after she reported domestic related incidents to her concerning her ex-partner. The applicant further reported a breach of bail concerning her ex-husband the following year and was dissatisfied with how Police Scotland dealt with her report. We have reviewed the handling of four complaints, namely that:
In 2024, the applicant reported domestic related crimes to an Inspector, who did not record a crime, or investigate the matters further.
In 2025, an officer confronted the applicant and accused her of being “accusatory” when the applicant was simply repeating what the initial attending officers had told her.
The integrity of the officers is in question as the applicant had been lied to, either when officers initially attended the applicant’s address to inform her that no action would be taken, or when the applicant was told by the supervisor that no decision had been made prior to their attendance; and
Several officers were unable to provide the applicant with information because the incident had been marked as restricted and were therefore unable to access the information.
Police Scotland's Decision
Police Scotland did not uphold the applicant’s complaints.
Our Findings
We have found that Police Scotland did not handle the applicant’s complaints to a reasonable standard.
Consequently, we have made four recommendations to address the shortcomings in Police Scotland’s handling of the complaints. In summary, we have recommended that Police Scotland conducts further necessary and proportionate enquiries into complaint 1, reassesses complaints 2, 3 and 4. Thereafter, Police Scotland should provide the applicant with a well-reasoned further response which clearly explains how the information available informed the conclusions reached.
We have also made a recommendation for Police Scotland to revisit the current policies and procedures relating to the investigation of criminal allegations made by or about serving police officers.
Our recommendations should be implemented by Police Scotland within two months of the date of this report.
Police Bodies: Police Scotland