Domestic Abuse deaths

Request Number: FOI/16259

Category: Incident and Crime Statistics – Victim

Subject: Domestic Abuse deaths

Request and Answer: 
Your request for information has now been considered. In respect of Section 1(1)(a) of the Act we can confirm that the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) does hold some information to which your request relates and this is being provided to you.
We further consider some of the information you seek in question numbers 1- 4 is exempt by virtue of Section 30 of FOIA and have detailed our rationale as to why this exemption applies. We have also provided you with links to guidance issued by the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) which we have followed in responding to your request.

Please note that PSNI will not be providing any breakdown of occurrences as you have requested - this information pertains to live investigations and is exempt under Section 31 of the FOIA. This will be further explained below in full.

Question 1
Please supply the numbers of women who were killed by a partner//ex-partner /relative, (including parent/child/sibling/other family by blood, marriage or adoption). Provide an annual breakdown from 2018- 2025 to date.

Answer 1
36

Question 2
Please supply the numbers of men who were killed by a partner,/ex-partner /relative, (including parent/child/sibling/other family by blood, marriage or adoption). Provide an annual breakdown from 2018- 2025 to date. Where possible breakdown relationship categories for example, partner, son etc. for the above.

Answer 2
18

Question 3
Please supply the numbers of women who were killed by a partner/relative (including parent/child/sibling/other family by blood, marriage or adoption who had previous contact with your police force in the 12 months prior to their death. To clarify please attempt to identify offence(s) where both the victim and the suspect had previous contact with the police for domestic abuse related incidents or crime with each other. Please give an annual breakdown from 2018 to 2025 or the last available data.

Answer 3
4

Question 4
Please supply the numbers of men who were killed by a partner/relative (including parent/child/sibling/other family by blood, marriage or adoption who had previous contact with your police force in the 12 months prior to their death. To clarify please attempt to identify offence(s) where both the victim and the suspect had previous contact with the police for domestic abuse related incidents or crime in relation to each other. Please give an annual breakdown from 2018 to 2025 or the last available data. Where possible breakdown relationship categories for example, partner, son etc. for the above.

For multi-victim events, count each victim separately. For multiple suspects, use the principal suspect linked to the victim record.
If you apply small-number suppression, please aggregate the smallest cells and note where suppression has been applied.

Answer 4
5

Please note, the decision has been taken not to supply information requested in regards to any breakdown of occurrences. Please see our rationale before.

Partial exemption
Section 17(1) of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 requires the Police Service of Northern Ireland, when refusing to provide such information (because the information is exempt) to provide you the applicant with a notice which:

(a)      states that fact,
(b)      specifies the exemption in question and
(c)      states (if not otherwise apparent) why the exemption applies.

The exemption/s, as well as the factors the Department considered when deciding where the public interest lies, are listed below:

Section 30(1)(a) - Investigations and proceedings conducted by the public authority - Information held by a public authority is exempt information if it has at any time been held by the authority for the purposes of: (a) Any investigation which the public authority has a duty to conduct with a view to it being ascertained (i) whether a person should be charged with an offence, or (ii) whether a person charged with an offence is guilty of it.

Section 30 is a class based and qualified exemption which means that there is no requirement to evidence the Harm in release but that it is necessary to conduct a Public Interest Test.  Public Interest considerations can be found below.

Harm
The requested information is held for the purposes of live ongoing investigation and if PSNI were to release the requested information at this time it could undermine the investigation and any potential future review of these cases. 

It could be argued that there is a public interest in the transparency of investigations carried out by the police to ensure they are being conducted appropriately and in line with current investigative guidelines. However, the Police Service has a duty of care to all individuals involved in any investigation to ensure effective law enforcement and the prevention and detection of crime. The Police Service will not disclose information which could compromise an investigation, whether it be live or potentially in the future.

Public Interest Test
Factors Favouring Release - Section 30
Disclosing this information would assist in showing that the PSNI are conducting thorough investigations into such incidents. There is much public interest in ensuring that this and any other Investigation is undertaken professionally and rigorously and disclosure of the requested information could promote public trust in providing transparency, demonstrating openness and accountability into how investigations take place.

Releasing the information may better inform the public and encourage others to come forward to report criminal offences if they know a proper investigation will be undertaken. All police investigations involve the use of public funds and this information could allow the public to make informed decisions about police procedures and the money spent in this business area.

Factors Favouring Retention – Section 30
The information requested is held for the purposes of investigations and therefore if the PSNI were to release the requested information at this time it could seriously compromise and undermine investigations, thus hindering the course of justice. Any disclosure could infringe on a suspect’s right to a fair trial and the rights of the victims if a prosecution were to fail due to disclosure of the information.  

It is the Association of Chief Police Officers approach that information relating to an investigation will rarely be disclosed under the provisions of the Freedom of Information Act. Whilst information may be released if it provides a tangible community benefit, for example to prevent or detect crime or to protect life or property, it is hard to see how the information here will do so.

It would therefore not be in the public interest to release information which would in turn impact on police resources and lead to more crime being committed, placing individuals at risk and an investigation or the outcome of subsequent proceedings could be compromised.

Section 30 - Balancing/Decision
On balance the requirement to withhold information relating to any investigations and in conjunction with personal information must take precedence over the important issues of public accountability and transparency as by releasing the information which may affect the outcome of any court proceedings must take precedence. The proper detection and investigation of crimes are cornerstones of a modern democratic society and the PSNI’s investigative role is of paramount importance and the Police Service will not divulge information if to do so would adversely affect any ongoing or future investigations.

A disclosure of information under Freedom of Information is a release to the world in general and not just to the individual requesting the information. Once information is disclosed by FOI there is no control or limits as to who or how the information is shared with other individuals, therefore a release under FOI is considered a disclosure to the world in general.