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CROWN PROSECUTION SERVICE RACIST INCIDENT MONITORING ANNUAL REPORT 2001 – 2002 RACIST INCIDENT MONITORING SCHEME

Index:

1. INTRODUCTION

1.1 This report contains information compiled by the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) on prosecution decisions and outcomes in all cases identified by the police or CPS as racist incidents. The report covers the period 1 April 2001 to 31 March 2002.

1.2 For the purposes of this report, the police and CPS have used the Macpherson definition of a racist incident, which states that: ‘a racist incident is any incident which is perceived to be racist by the victim or any other person’.

1.3 All racist incident cases submitted by the police to The CPS for prosecution should be clearly marked in accordance with the national agreement. This enables The CPS to deal with the case appropriately and to commence the tracking procedure. If, on reviewing the evidence in the case, it is apparent that the case is a racist incident but has not been identified by the police, the reviewing lawyer will mark the case and ensure that it enters the system.

1.4 Details of all cases identified by either the police or CPS as racist incidents are kept by each of the 42 CPS Areas and by the Casework Directorate in London, a specialist unit dealing with serious crime. Returns are provided monthly to CPS Headquarters in York where the information is collated and the annual report prepared.

1.5 Racially aggravated crime was introduced by the Crime and Disorder Act 1998. This Act defined what is meant by racial aggravation and created specific offences of racially aggravated assault, criminal damage, public order and harassment. Additionally, section 153 of the Powers of Criminal Courts (Sentencing) Act 2000 (replacing section 82 of the 1998 Act) imposes a duty on sentencing courts to treat evidence of racial aggravation as an aggravating feature, increasing the seriousness of the offence and the sentence to be imposed, in cases where offences are not specifically charged under the 1998 Act.

1.6 The CPS Racist Incident Monitoring Scheme (RIMS) covers all racist incidents and therefore includes information about specific offences charged under the 1998 Act as well as offences that could fall within Section 153. The report provides the following information:

  • the number of racist incident defendant cases submitted by CPS Areas during the reporting period;
  • CPS decisions on charges put by the police;
  • details of charges prosecuted;
  • details of charges dropped;
  • outcomes of charges prosecuted in the magistrates’ courts, Crown Courts and youth courts; and
  • sentences imposed by each of these court types.

Religiously aggravated crime

1.7 The Crime and Disorder Act 1998 was amended by the Anti-terrorism, Crime and Security Act 2001, which created new offences of religiously aggravated crime. The CPS has been monitoring prosecutions of these new offences under the existing racist incident monitoring procedures. The Anti-terrorism, Crime and Security Act came into force on 14 December 2001. There were no prosecutions for religiously aggravated crime completed by 31 March 2002, the closing date for the period covered by the present report.

2. KEY FINDINGS – SUMMARY AND COMMENTS

2.1 IDENTIFICATION OF A RACIST INCIDENT

Number of defendants received 3728

Police identification 3321 National percentage 89%

CPS identification 407 National percentage 11%

Comment

The number of defendant cases received for prosecution has increased by over 20% from 3105 to 3728. Police performance in marking racist incident files for CPS attention continues to improve steadily. This year’s figure of 89% is a 4% increase on the previous year.

2.2 DEFENDANTS PROSECUTED/NOT PROSECUTED

Defendants prosecuted 2674

Defendants not prosecuted 1054

% of defendants prosecuted National percentage 72%

Comment

The CPS prosecuted 72% of the cases received. The remaining 28% were discontinued, dropped at court or could not be prosecuted because the defendant failed to appear. The 28% figure, which covers proceedings in all courts, compares with the 28.3% figure for all types of offences over the same period.

2.3 CHARGES

NUMBER OF POLICE CHARGES 5477

NUMBER and % OF CHARGES UNALTERED 4148 National percentage 76%

NUMBER OF CHARGES ADDED BY THE CPS 287

TOTAL NUMBER OF CHARGES 5764

Total number charges Prosecuted 3597 National percentage 62%

Total number of charges Dropped 2167 National percentage 38%

Comment

This is the third full year in which we have gathered information on the new racially aggravated offences under the Crime and Disorder Act 1998. The percentage of police charges unaltered by The CPS was 76% compared with the 75% in 2000 - 2001 and 47% recorded in 1999 - 2000. The number of charges added by The CPS decreased from 292 to 287.

2.4 DETAILS OF CHARGES PROSECUTED

Number of charges prosecuted 3597

Racially aggravated assaults 488

Racially aggravated criminal damage 184

Racially aggravated public order 1272

Racially aggravated harassment 166

Other assaults 433

Other criminal damage 201

Other public order 552

Other harassment 39

Theft Act 72

Other 187

Homicide 3

Comment

58% of the 3597 offences prosecuted were charged under the Crime and Disorder Act with the majority being racially aggravated public order offences. Although the remainder could not be prosecuted under the Act, a proportion contained admissible evidence of racial aggravation, which would have been presented to the court.

The three charges of homicide represent a single case involving three defendants.

2.5 OUTCOME OF CHARGES PROSECUTED

Guilty pleas 2482 National percentage 69%

Guilty after contest 513 National percentage 14%

Committal discharge 52 National percentage 1%

Half-time acquittal 117 National percentage 3%

Full-time acquittal 433 National percentage 12

Venue of Cases

Charges dealt with at the Mags. Court 2242 62%

Charges dealt with at the Crown Court 836 23%

Charges dealt with at the Youth Court 519 15%

Comment

The outcomes are charged-based rather than defendant-based and for this reason it is not possible to make direct comparisons with the outcomes for defendants in the national Performance Indicator system. We would, however, expect the percentage figures for defendants to be higher because each defendant faces an average of more than one charge. This year’s 83% conviction rate remains the same as the previous year.

2.6 REASONS FOR DROPPING CHARGES

Number of charges dropped 2167

Dropped: witness fails to attend 329 National percentage 15%

Dropped: witness refuses to give evidence 218 National percentage 10%

Dropped: other insufficient evidence 923 National percentage 43%

Dropped: public interest 326 15% Dropped: written off/other 178 National percentage 8%

Bound Over without trial 193 National percentage 9%

Comment

Witness difficulties accounted for 25% of the charges dropped. Charges dropped because there was insufficient evidence accounted for a further 43%. Charges not pursued on public interest grounds accounted for 15% with the most common reason being that the defendant was being dealt with on more serious offences or was serving a long prison sentence. A further 8% of charges could not be prosecuted because the defendant failed to attend court and/or could not be traced. In respect of the remaining 9% of charges, the defendants were bound over without trial.

Charges dropped do not necessarily result in the whole case being terminated. The scheme records only those offences that are racially aggravated. A defendant may be charged with other offences arising from the same set of facts and these would not be tracked as part of the scheme.

3. THE NUMBER OF DEFENDANTS CHARGED

3.1 The report contains a mixture of defendant based and charge based information. The initial unit of counting for the scheme is the defendant but decisions taken in respect of each defendant, whether by The CPS in relation to prosecution or by the courts in relation to sentence, are recorded on a charge by charge basis rather than a whole case basis. This means that four defendants in one case charged jointly with one offence will be counted as four units. Similarly, one defendant charged with several offences will be counted as one unit provided at least one of the offences is racially aggravated for the purpose of the scheme.

3.2 During the reporting period, 3728 defendants were charged with an offence, which, in view of the police or CPS, met the definition of a racist incident. In comparison with 2000 -2001 this represents an increase of over 20%. Table 1 represents the total number of defendants recorded by each CPS Area.

TABLE 1 – THE NUMBER OF DEFENDANT CASES RECORDED BY EACH CPS AREA

(Previous year’s figure in brackets)

  • Avon & Somerset 27 (38)
  • Bedfordshire 43 (59)
  • Cambridgeshire 83 (37)
  • Cheshire 76 (72)
  • Cleveland 12 (10)
  • Cumbria 20 (17)
  • Derbyshire 27 (46)
  • Devon & Cornwall 73 (67)
  • Dorset 27 (26)
  • Durham 41 (27)
  • Dyfed Powys 30 (37)
  • Essex 38 (10)
  • Gloucestershire 18 (23)
  • Gt Manchester 216 (206)
  • Gwent 91 (77)
  • Hampshire 57 (88)
  • Hertfordshire 5 (3)
  • Humberside 58 (39)
  • Kent 81 (34)
  • Lancashire 70 (98)
  • Leicestershire 133 (105)
  • Lincolnshire 9 (10)
  • Merseyside 65 (84)
  • Metropolitan & City 219 (339)
  • Norfolk 54 (37)
  • Northants 47 (44)
  • Northumbria 184 (185)
  • North Wales 46 (16)
  • North Yorkshire 28 (17)
  • Nottinghamshire 143 (81)
  • South Wales 237 (195)
  • South Yorkshire 68 (66)
  • Staffordshire 152 (67)
  • Suffolk 43 (22)
  • Surrey 35 (39)
  • Sussex 76 (44)
  • Thames Valley 73 (77)
  • Warwickshire 32 (37)
  • West Mercia 61 (36)
  • West Midlands 432 (279)
  • West Yorkshire 421 (280)
  • Wiltshire 28 (27)
  • Casework Dir 0 (4)
  • Total 3728 (3105)

4. POLICE/CPS IDENTIFICATION OF A RACIST INCIDENT

4.1 There is a national agreement with the police that, when submitting files to The CPS, they will identify those which meet the definition of a racist incident. Files not identified by the police will be identified by The CPS.

4.2 During this reporting year the police have identified 89% of cases as meeting the Macpherson definition of a racist incident. Compared to last year's report this is an increase of 4%. The CPS identified the remaining 11%. Table 2 indicates the identification performance of The CPS and the police by Area.

4.3 Police identification in 16 CPS Areas was below the national average of 89%. In 27 Areas identification by the police was 89% and over.

TABLE 2 – POLICE/CPS IDENTIFICATION OF RACIST INCIDENT CASES BY AREA

  • Avon & Somerset Police: 19 70% CPS: 8 30%
  • Bedfordshire Police: 29 67% CPS: 14 33%
  • Cambridgeshire Police: 75 90% CPS: 8 10%
  • Cheshire Police: 76 100% CPS: 0 0%
  • Cleveland Police: 6 50% CPS: 6 50%
  • Cumbria Police: 19 95% CPS: 1 5%
  • Derbyshire Police: 24 89% CPS: 3 11%
  • Devon & Cornwall Police: 69 95% CPS: 4 5%
  • Dorset Police: 27 100% CPS: 0 0%
  • Durham Police: 36 88% CPS: 5 12%
  • Dyfed Powys Police: 28 93% CPS: 2 7%
  • Essex Police: 31 82% CPS: 7 18%
  • Gloucestershire Police: 18 100% CPS: 0 0%
  • Gt Manchester Police: 194 90% CPS: 22 10%
  • Gwent Police: 88 97% CPS: 3 3%
  • Hampshire Police: 57 100% CPS: 0 0%
  • Hertfordshire Police: 51 94% CPS: 3 6%
  • Humberside Police: 44 76% CPS: 14 24%
  • Kent Police: 74 91% CPS: 7 9%
  • Lancashire Police: 67 96% CPS: 3 4%
  • Leicestershire Police: 120 90% CPS: 13 10%
  • Lincolnshire Police: 6 67% CPS: 3 33%
  • Merseyside Police: 62 95% CPS: 3 5%
  • Metropolitan & City Police: 200 91% CPS: 19 9%
  • Norfolk Police: 51 94% CPS: 3 6%
  • Northants Police: 38 81% CPS: 9 19%
  • Northumbria Police: 173 94% CPS: 11 6%
  • North Wales Police: 38 83% CPS: 8 17%
  • North Yorkshire Police: 22 79% CPS: 6 21%
  • Nottinghamshire Police: 132 92% CPS: 11 8%
  • South Wales Police: 225 95% CPS: 12 5%
  • South Yorkshire Police: 56 82% CPS: 12 18%
  • Staffordshire Police: 135 89% CPS: 17 11%
  • Suffolk Police: 42 98% CPS: 1 2%
  • Surrey Police: 34 97% CPS: 1 3%
  • Sussex Police: 66 87% CPS: 10 13%
  • Thames Valley Police: 70 96% CPS: 3 4%
  • Warwickshire Police: 27 84% CPS: 5 16%
  • West Mercia Police: 52 85% CPS: 9 15%
  • West Midlands Police: 379 88% CPS: 53 12%
  • West Yorkshire Police: 335 80% CPS: 86 20%
  • Wiltshire Police: 26 93% CPS: 2 7%
  • Casework Dir Police: 0 0% CPS: 0 0%
  • Total Police: 3321 89% CPS: 407 11%

5. POLICE RACIST INCIDENT REPORT/COMPUTER RECORD SUPPLIED WITH FILE

5.1 In order to assist with the early identification of racist incidents, in addition to marking the file appropriately when it is submitted to The CPS, the police nationally have agreed to supply The CPS with a copy of their racist incident report form or computer record at the same time. Information contained on the report form may have evidential significance or could prompt The CPS lawyer to raise further questions with the police with a view to improving the quality of the evidence. Of the 3728 defendant cases referred to The CPS, the police supplied a copy of their racist incident report form or computer record in only 657 cases (18%) a 2% decrease from the previous year. The percentage varies considerably from Area to Area. Table 3 shows police performance by CPS Area. Each CPS Area equates to a police force area save London, which includes the Metropolitan and City forces and the Casework Directorate, which may take work from any force.

TABLE 3 – POLICE RACIST INCIDENT REPORT/COMPUTER RECORD SUPPLIED WITH FILE

Did the police supply a copy of their Racist Incident Report or computer record with the file?

  • Avon & Somerset Yes: 6 22% No: 21 78%
  • Bedfordshire Yes: 1 2% No: 42 98%
  • Cambridgeshire Yes: 1 1% No: 82 99%
  • Cheshire Yes: 36 47% No: 40 53%
  • Cleveland Yes: 6 50% No: 6 50%
  • Cumbria Yes: 8 40% No: 12 60%
  • Derbyshire Yes: 0 0% No: 27 100%
  • Devon & Cornwall Yes: 32 44% No: 41 56%
  • Dorset Yes: 13 48% No: 14 52%
  • Durham Yes: 8 20% No: 33 80%
  • Dyfed Powys Yes: 10 33% No: 20 67%
  • Essex Yes: 3 8% No: 35 92%
  • Gloucestershire Yes: 0 0% No: 18 100%
  • Gt Manchester Yes: 55 25% No: 161 75%
  • Gwent Yes: 10 11% No: 81 89%
  • Hampshire Yes: 4 7% No: 53 93%
  • Hertfordshire Yes: 18 33% No: 36 67%
  • Humberside Yes: 4 7% No: 54 93%
  • Kent Yes: 6 7% No: 75 93%
  • Lancashire Yes: 6 9% No: 64 91%
  • Leicestershire Yes: 9 7% No: 124 93%
  • Lincolnshire Yes: 0 0% No: 9 100%
  • Merseyside Yes: 22 34% No: 43 66%
  • Metropolitan & City Yes: 19 9% No: 200 91%
  • Norfolk Yes: 11 20% No: 43 80%
  • Northants Yes: 6 13% No: 41 87%
  • Northumbria Yes: 78 42% No: 106 58%
  • North Wales Yes: 7 15% No: 39 85%
  • North Yorkshire Yes: 1 4% No: 27 96%
  • Nottinghamshire Yes: 32 22% No: 111 78%
  • South Wales Yes: 115 49% No: 122 51%
  • South Yorkshire Yes: 2 3% No: 66 97%
  • Staffordshire Yes: 4 3% No: 148 97%
  • Suffolk Yes: 15 35% No: 28 65%
  • Surrey Yes: 1 3% No: 34 97%
  • Sussex Yes: 2 3% No: 74 97%
  • Thames Valley Yes: 10 14% No: 63 86%
  • Warwickshire Yes: 3 9% No: 29 91%
  • West Mercia Yes: 19 31% No: 42 69%
  • West Midlands Yes: 5 1% No: 427 99%
  • West Yorkshire Yes: 69 16% No: 352 84%
  • Wiltshire Yes: 0 0% No: 28 100%
  • Casework Dir Yes: 0 0% No: 0 0%
  • Total Yes: 657 18% No: 3071 82%

6. ADMISSIBLE EVIDENCE OF RACIAL AGGRAVATION

6.1 The Macpherson definition of a racist incident is deliberately wide in order to encourage the reporting of racist incidents to the police. Inevitably, in some cases, despite the case having been reported as a racist incident, there will not be sufficient evidence to justify prosecution for a racially aggravated offence under the definition in the Crime and Disorder Act 1998.

6.2 The monitoring scheme requires The CPS lawyer considering the evidence in the case to indicate whether in his or her judgement there was sufficient evidence to establish racial aggravation as defined by the 1998 Act. Table 4 below indicates that the reviewing lawyer took the view that there was such evidence in 3002 defendant cases (81%) received from the police and further breaks this down for each Area.

TABLE 4 – ADMISSIBLE EVIDENCE OF RACIAL AGGRAVATION

Did The CPS lawyer consider that there was sufficient evidence to establish racial aggravation as defined by Section 28 Crime & Disorder Act 1998?

  • Avon & Somerset Yes: 21 78% No: 6 22%
  • Bedfordshire Yes: 24 56% No: 19 44%
  • Cambridgeshire Yes: 55 66% No: 28 34%
  • Cheshire Yes: 68 89% No: 8 11%
  • Cleveland Yes: 12 100% No: 0 0%
  • Cumbria Yes: 19 95% No: 1 5%
  • Derbyshire Yes: 24 89% No: 3 11%
  • Devon & Cornwall Yes: 52 71% No: 21 29%
  • Dorset Yes: 25 93% No: 2 7%
  • Durham Yes: 33 80% No: 8 20%
  • Dyfed Powys Yes: 28 93% No: 2 7%
  • Essex Yes: 35 92% No: 3 8%
  • Gloucestershire Yes: 14 78% No: 4 22%
  • Gt Manchester Yes: 189 88% No: 27 13%
  • Gwent Yes: 77 85% No: 14 15%
  • Hampshire Yes: 53 93% No: 4 7%
  • Hertfordshire Yes: 39 72% No: 15 28%
  • Humberside Yes: 48 83% No: 10 17%
  • Kent Yes: 62 77% No: 19 23%
  • Lancashire Yes: 52 74% No: 18 26%
  • Leicestershire Yes: 99 74% No: 34 26%
  • Lincolnshire Yes: 8 89% No: 1 11%
  • Merseyside Yes: 55 85% No: 10 15%
  • Metropolitan & City Yes: 188 86% No: 31 14%
  • Norfolk Yes: 51 94% No: 3 6%
  • Northants Yes: 42 89% No: 5 11%
  • Northumbria Yes: 161 88% No: 23 13%
  • North Wales Yes: 37 80% No: 9 20%
  • North Yorkshire Yes: 26 93% No: 2 7%
  • Nottinghamshire Yes: 122 85% No: 21 15%
  • South Wales Yes: 199 84% No: 38 16%
  • South Yorkshire Yes: 58 85% No: 10 15%
  • Staffordshire Yes: 123 81% No: 29 19%
  • Suffolk Yes: 34 79% No: 9 21%
  • Surrey Yes: 27 77% No: 8 23%
  • Sussex Yes: 69 91% No: 7 9%
  • Thames Valley Yes: 56 77% No: 17 23%
  • Warwickshire Yes: 23 72% No: 9 28%
  • West Mercia Yes: 52 85% No: 9 15%
  • West Midlands Yes: 393 91% No: 39 9%
  • West Yorkshire Yes: 230 55% No: 191 45%
  • Wiltshire Yes: 19 68% No: 9 32%
  • Casework Dir Yes: 0 0% No: 0 0%
  • Total Yes: 3002 81% No: 726 19%

7. OFFENCES CHARGED BY THE POLICE

7.1 During the reporting year there were 5477 offences charged by the police, broken down as follows:

1019 racially aggravated assaults

348 racially aggravated criminal damage

2039 racially aggravated public order

320 racially aggravated harassment

474 other assaults

266 other criminal damage

641 other public order

26 other harassment

101 Theft Act

4 homicide

239 other offences

7.2 The Crime and Disorder Act 1998 makes it possible for certain specified offences to be charged under the Act as racially aggravated crimes. The racially aggravated assault, criminal damage, public order and harassment charges listed above are offences specifically charged under the Act. The remaining offences listed were charged under other legislation.

AREA NUMBER OF POLICECHARGES HOMICIDE RA ASSAULT OTHER ASSAULT RA DAMAGE OTHER DAMAGE RA PUBLIC ORDER OTHER PUBLIC ORDER RA HARASSMENT OTHER HARASSMENT THEFT ACT OTHER
Avon & Somerset 41 0 6 4 2 1 14 9 1 0 2 2
Bedfordshire 75 0 21 17 1 7 19 4 5 0 0 1
Cambridgeshire 158 0 9 20 19 9 48 24 13 0 5 11
Cheshire 96 0 14 4 10 5 52 6 2 0 0 3
Cleveland 20 0 1 5 0 2 6 6 0 0 0 0
Cumbria 25 0 4 3 1 0 15 0 2 0 0 0
Derbyshire 34 0 4 2 3 0 15 2 6 1 0 1
Devon & Cornwall 99 0 27 8 1 4 29 14 10 0 3 3
Dorset 45 0 13 1 9 1 7 6 4 0 3 1
Durham 53 0 1 1 3 1 18 14 10 0 2 3
Dyfed Powys 43 0 1 0 4 2 30 3 1 0 0 2
Essex 50 0 11 6 1 2 21 5 3 0 1 0
Gloucestershire 26 0 5 2 1 2 14 1 0 1 0 0
Gt Manchester 362 0 48 61 25 21 112 51 15 2 6 21
Gwent 138 0 21 9 5 10 59 26 1 0 0 7
Hampshire 113 0 26 10 8 5 34 14 4 0 1 11
Hertfordshire 100 0 19 12 8 3 35 14 3 0 2 4
Humberside 83 0 12 7 3 3 26 24 3 1 2 2
Kent 115 0 34 6 9 5 34 13 7 0 0 7
Lancashire 79 0 5 0 12 1 55 3 3 0 0 0
Leicestershire 198 0 37 10 12 10 87 20 15 0 2 5
Lincolnshire 13 0 5 1 0 0 3 1 3 0 0 0
Merseyside 83 0 25 3 12 0 28 3 9 0 1 2
Metropolitan & City 375 0 86 53 28 18 116 30 13 1 7 23
Norfolk 86 0 16 6 2 1 42 13 4 1 0 1
Northants 102 0 9 18 4 9 28 16 3 1 4 10
Northumbria 229 0 36 6 14 13 96 21 28 0 8 7
North Wales 69 0 10 7 6 3 25 15 0 2 0 1
North Yorkshire 36 0 7 0 1 1 18 4 2 0 0 3
Nottinghamshire 198 0 44 8 9 5 99 18 4 0 2 9
South Wales 409 0 49 33 18 33 153 41 27 2 19 34
South Yorkshire 112 0 28 15 10 8 27 18 1 0 1 4
Staffordshire 186 0 27 15 7 15 82 26 4 1 1 8
Suffolk 48 0 13 0 1 0 24 0 9 0 0 1
Surrey 50 0 11 0 9 0 23 0 7 0 0 0
Sussex 109 0 19 7 4 5 41 9 6 1 3 14
Thames Valley 112 0 23 9 11 7 42 9 4 1 1 5
Warwickshire 47 0 6 6 2 2 25 1 1 0 1 3
West Mercia 81 0 12 9 0 1 47 4 5 1 2 0
West Midlands 590 0 165 48 47 29 183 45 42 5 13 13
West Yorkshire 556 0 106 40 24 19 193 105 38 5 9 17
Wiltshire 33 4 3 2 2 3 14 3 2 0 0 0
Casework Dir 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Total 5477 4 1019 474 348 266 2039 641 320 26 101 239
Percentage 100% 0% 19% 9% 6% 5% 37% 12% 6% 0% 2% 4%

8. CPS ACTION ON POLICE CHARGES

8.1 Of the 5477 police charges, 76% (or 4148 charges) were unaltered by The CPS, compared with 75% recorded in 2000 – 2001 and 47% recorded in 1999 - 2000. Table 6 gives information concerning these charges together with a breakdown of The CPS action in respect of the remaining 24%.

TABLE 6 – CPS ACTION ON POLICE CHARGES

AREA Number of Police Charges Unaltered Increase RA to Non RA e.g. s.20 to s.18 Increase Non RA To RA Reduce RA To Non RA Reduce Non RA to RA e.g. s.18 to s.20 Increase for any other reasons Reduce for any other reasons
Avon & Somerset 41 31 0 4 2 0 0 4
Bedfordshire 75 46 0 2 7 0 3 17
Cambridgeshire 158 126 0 1 19 0 5 7
Cheshire 96 80 0 6 5 0 1 4
Cleveland 20 14 0 6 0 0 0 0
Cumbria 25 21 0 0 1 0 0 3
Derbyshire 34 25 0 2 3 0 0 4
Devon & Cornwall 99 67 0 7 14 1 1 9
Dorset 45 38 1 0 5 0 0 1
Durham 53 48 0 3 1 0 0 1
Dyfed Powys 43 29 0 2 1 0 2 9
Essex 50 30 1 6 10 0 1 2
Gloucestershire 26 19 0 0 4 1 0 2
Gt Manchester 362 253 0 20 20 11 12 46
Gwent 138 103 0 8 10 0 2 15
Hampshire 113 92 0 4 7 0 0 10
Hertfordshire 100 72 0 10 16 0 1 1
Humberside 83 58 0 7 10 0 0 8
Kent 115 72 0 6 20 0 1 16
Lancashire 79 54 0 1 13 0 0 11
Leicestershire 198 145 0 5 24 0 2 22
Lincolnshire 13 11 0 0 2 0 0 0
Merseyside 83 67 0 2 9 1 0 4
Metropolitan & City 375 307 0 14 32 1 6 15
Norfolk 86 67 0 2 8 2 0 7
Northants 102 80 1 11 4 0 2 4
Northumbria 229 180 2 12 18 2 5 10
North Wales 69 52 1 5 1 0 4 6
North Yorkshire 36 27 0 1 3 0 0 5
Nottinghamshire 198 128 0 13 25 2 6 24
South Wales 409 339 2 17 35 1 2 13
South Yorkshire 112 87 0 4 5 0 0 16
Staffordshire 186 144 0 15 10 1 1 15
Suffolk 48 37 0 0 8 0 0 3
Surrey 50 22 1 0 18 0 0 9
Sussex 109 87 0 2 5 0 2 13
Thames Valley 112 79 0 3 13 1 1 15
Warwickshire 47 35 0 4 3 0 0 5
West Mercia 81 62 0 6 6 0 3 4
West Midlands 590 458 2 23 66 4 7 30
West Yorkshire 556 433 1 12 45 2 4 59
Wiltshire 33 23 0 1 6 0 1 2
Casework Dir 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Total 5477 4148 12 247 514 30 75 451
Percentage 100% 76% 0% 5% 9% 1% 1% 8%

8.2 It should be noted that not all dropped charges necessarily result in the termination of a prosecution. Some charges against a defendant may proceed whilst others may be dropped.

9. CHARGES ADDED BY THE CPS

9.1 There were 5477 police charges recorded for the reporting period. A further 287 charges were added by The CPS, making a total of 5764 charges. A breakdown of the added charges by offence type is given in Table 7.

TABLE 7 – CHARGES ADDED BY OFFENCE TYPE

AREA Number of Police Charges No, of charges added by CPS HOMICIDE RA ASSAULT OTHER ASSAULT RA DAMAGE OTHER DAMAGE RA PUBLIC ORDER OTHER PUBLIC ORDER RA HARASSMENT OTHER HARASSMENT THEFT ACT OTHER
Avon & Somerset 41 3 0 0 1 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0
Bedfordshire 75 15 0 2 6 0 0 1 2 2 0 0 2
Cambridgeshire 158 11 0 4 1 0 2 2 2 0 0 0 0
Cheshire 96 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Cleveland 20 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Cumbria 25 3 0 2 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0
Derbyshire 34 3 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 1
Devon & Cornwall 99 2 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 0 0
Dorset 45 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Durham 53 6 0 1 1 0 0 3 0 1 0 0 0
Dyfed Powys 43 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Essex 50 4 0 2 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Gloucestershire 26 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0
Gt Manchester 362 24 0 3 2 1 1 12 2 1 1 0 1
Gwent 138 15 0 1 3 0 0 5 5 0 1 0 0
Hampshire 113 7 0 1 2 0 0 0 2 1 1 0 0
Hertfordshire 100 3 0 0 2 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0
Humberside 83 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0
Kent 115 9 0 1 1 0 1 4 1 0 0 0 1
Lancashire 79 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0
Leicestershire 198 6 0 1 0 0 2 1 0 1 1 0 0
Lincolnshire 13 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0
Merseyside 83 5 0 1 3 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0
Metropolitan & City 375 24 0 7 5 0 2 2 6 0 2 0 0
Norfolk 86 3 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 1
Northants 102 4 0 0 1 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 1
Northumbria 229 3 0 0 1 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 0
North Wales 69 8 0 3 0 0 0 4 1 0 0 0 0
North Yorkshire 36 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0
Nottinghamshire 198 10 0 2 6 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 0
South Wales 409 20 0 1 4 2 0 6 5 0 1 0 1
South Yorkshire 112 5 0 0 0 0 1 1 2 1 0 0 0
Staffordshire 186 32 0 2 5 1 1 14 9 0 0 0 0
Suffolk 48 3 0 0 0 1 0 2 0 0 0 0 0
Surrey 50 3 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 1 0 0
Sussex 109 4 0 0 2 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0
Thames Valley 112 2 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0
Warwickshire 47 3 0 0 0 0 0 2 1 0 0 0 0
West Mercia 81 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
West Midlands 590 32 0 1 5 2 0 4 15 3 1 0 1
West Yorkshire 556 8 0 0 1 0 0 2 2 2 0 0 1
Wiltshire 33 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Casework Dir 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Total 5477 287 0 35 55 7 12 81 62 15 10 0 10
Percentage 100% 100% 0% 12% 19% 2% 4% 28% 22% 5% 4% 0% 4%

10. DETAILS OF CHARGES PROSECUTED

10.1 A total of 2674 defendants were prosecuted in the magistrates' court, Crown Court and youth court on 3597 charges (charges either put by the police or added by The CPS). Of the 3597 charges, 2242 charges (62%) were prosecuted in the magistrates' court, 836 charges (23%) in the Crown Court and 519 charges (15%) in the youth court. Tables 8 - 10 set out the types of offences dealt with in each of the court centres.

TABLE 8 – OFFENCES PROSECUTED IN THE MAGISTRATES’ COURT

AREA Charges Prosecuted HOMICIDE RA ASSAULT OTHER ASSAULT RA DAMAGE OTHER DAMAGE RA PUBLIC ORDER OTHER PUBLIC ORDER RA HARASSMENT OTHER HARASSMENT THEFT ACT OTHER
Avon & Somerset 17 0 0 3 2 0 9 1 0 0 1 1
Bedfordshire 25 0 9 2 1 0 7 2 1 2 0 1
Cambridgeshire 71 0 7 10 6 7 20 10 0 0 2 9
Cheshire 51 0 5 2 4 1 34 2 1 0 0 2
Cleveland 6 0 0 0 0 2 3 1 0 0 0 0
Cumbria 11 0 0 0 0 0 11 0 0 0 0 0
Derbyshire 20 0 0 3 0 1 9 0 6 0 0 1
Devon & Cornwall 44 0 6 4 0 2 17 6 5 1 1 2
Dorset 12 0 2 0 1 2 1 2 2 0 2 0
Durham 28 0 1 2 1 2 13 3 4 0 1 1
Dyfed Powys 22 0 0 0 2 0 15 2 2 1 0 0
Essex 15 0 0 2 0 0 6 6 1 0 0 0
Gloucestershire 12 0 3 0 0 1 5 2 0 1 0 0
Gt Manchester 129 0 8 15 6 9 67 11 2 1 1 9
Gwent 74 0 7 2 2 7 42 11 0 0 0 3
Hampshire 36 0 4 3 3 2 13 6 2 1 1 1
Hertfordshire 53 0 4 5 7 2 19 12 0 0 2 2
Humberside 26 0 2 5 0 0 14 2 3 0 0 0
Kent 46 0 5 7 2 2 12 11 2 0 0 5
Lancashire 50 0 2 2 3 3 33 4 2 1 0 0
Leicestershire 92 0 9 8 4 3 46 9 6 1 1 5
Lincolnshire 5 0 1 1 0 0 3 0 0 0 0 0
Merseyside 28 0 4 3 2 3 12 0 1 0 1 2
Metropolitan & City 145 0 16 21 6 9 60 16 4 0 5 8
Norfolk 27 0 1 1 0 1 14 5 1 1 0 3
Northants 59 0 5 12 1 6 18 6 1 0 3 7
Northumbria 77 0 5 4 5 4 35 12 7 0 3 2
North Wales 40 0 4 4 1 3 14 12 0 0 0 2
North Yorkshire 22 0 2 0 1 1 12 2 0 0 0 4
Nottinghamshire 96 0 8 7 4 7 48 13 3 1 1 4
South Wales 164 0 12 16 4 15 51 28 9 2 6 21
South Yorkshire 47 0 6 14 5 1 13 6 1 0 0 1
Staffordshire 97 0 9 14 2 10 44 14 1 0 0 3
Suffolk 18 0 2 0 1 0 12 2 0 1 0 0
Surrey 28 0 3 1 0 3 12 8 1 0 0 0
Sussex 41 0 4 3 1 2 20 1 1 1 2 6
Thames Valley 49 0 4 4 4 2 20 11 1 0 1 2
Warwickshire 28 0 4 4 1 0 14 2 0 0 1 2
West Mercia 38 0 2 3 0 1 27 1 3 1 0 0
West Midlands 190 0 29 20 10 20 69 22 9 3 6 2
West Yorkshire 182 0 23 20 9 7 71 32 11 1 4 4
Wiltshire 21 0 1 0 2 1 10 5 1 0 0 1
Casework Dir 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Total 2242 0 219 227 103 142 975 301 94 20 45 116
Percentage 100% 0% 10% 10% 5% 7% 40% 13% 6% 1% 3% 5%

TABLE 9 – OFFENCES PROSECUTED IN THE CROWN COURT

AREA Charges Prosecuted HOMICIDE RA ASSAULT OTHER ASSAULT RA DAMAGE OTHER DAMAGE RA PUBLIC ORDER OTHER PUBLIC ORDER RA HARASSMENT OTHER HARASSMENT THEFT ACT OTHER
Avon & Somerset 8 0 2 2 0 1 1 1 0 0 0 1
Bedfordshire 26 0 1 11 0 1 3 4 3 0 0 3
Cambridgeshire 26 0 1 4 1 4 2 6 4 0 1 3
Cheshire 23 0 2 1 8 0 3 6 1 0 0 2
Cleveland 7 0 3 0 0 0 0 4 0 0 0 0
Cumbria 9 0 4 3 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0
Derbyshire 6 0 0 1 1 0 3 1 0 0 0 0
Devon & Cornwall 12 0 3 6 0 0 0 0 0 3 0 0
Dorset 15 0 3 4 1 2 3 1 0 0 0 1
Durham 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 0 0 0
Dyfed Powys 3 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 1
Essex 13 0 10 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 1 0
Gloucestershire 5 0 2 0 0 0 3 0 0 0 0 0
Gt Manchester 74 0 12 13 4 6 5 23 4 0 2 5
Gwent 10 0 2 0 0 0 0 8 0 0 0 0
Hampshire 43 0 16 2 0 2 10 6 0 0 0 7
Hertfordshire 17 0 4 3 5 0 1 2 2 0 0 0
Humberside 35 0 3 1 4 0 3 19 0 1 2 2
Kent 25 0 7 2 0 2 5 3 2 0 0 4
Lancashire 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0
Leicestershire 30 0 8 13 1 2 2 2 2 0 0 0
Lincolnshire 2 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0
Merseyside 11 0 4 0 1 0 3 2 1 0 0 0
Metropolitan & City 73 0 21 13 4 3 16 5 3 4 0 4
Norfolk 16 0 7 1 0 1 2 3 2 0 0 0
Northants 15 0 1 1 1 0 7 0 1 0 0 4
Northumbria 34 0 5 2 4 0 6 8 1 2 3 3
North Wales 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 1 0 0 0
North Yorkshire 2 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Nottinghamshire 8 0 3 0 0 0 3 0 1 0 0 1
South Wales 47 0 6 5 2 3 14 6 1 1 5 4
South Yorkshire 22 0 7 0 0 2 2 10 0 0 0 1
Staffordshire 16 0 5 3 0 1 5 2 0 0 0 0
Suffolk 7 0 2 2 0 0 1 2 0 0 0 0
Surrey 4 0 3 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0
Sussex 22 0 5 5 1 1 5 0 1 0 1 3
Thames Valley 12 0 6 1 2 0 1 0 2 0 0 0
Warwickshire 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0
West Mercia 12 0 5 2 0 0 3 1 0 0 1 0
West Midlands 66 0 16 10 7 2 6 13 5 0 3 4
West Yorkshire 64 0 12 7 1 1 15 25 0 0 0 3
Wiltshire 7 3 1 2 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0
Casework Dir 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Total 836 3 195 120 48 34 141 167 42 11 19 56
Percentage 100% 0% 24% 14% 6% 4% 17% 20% 5% 1% 2% 7%

TABLE 10 – OFFENCES PROSECUTED IN THE YOUTH COURT

AREA Charges Prosecuted HOMICIDE RA ASSAULT OTHER ASSAULT RA DAMAGE OTHER DAMAGE RA PUBLIC ORDER OTHER PUBLIC ORDER RA HARASSMENT OTHER HARASSMENT THEFT ACT OTHER
Avon & Somerset 3 0 0 0 0 0 2 1 0 0 0 0
Bedfordshire 3 0 1 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0
Cambridgeshire 13 0 0 3 1 1 0 3 4 0 1 0
Cheshire 2 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0
Cleveland 2 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0
Cumbria 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0
Derbyshire 5 0 0 0 0 0 3 2 0 0 0 0
Devon & Cornwall 5 0 1 1 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 1
Dorset 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Durham 3 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 1
Dyfed Powys 2 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0
Essex 4 0 2 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0
Gloucestershire 3 0 0 1 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0
Gt Manchester 34 0 4 2 3 1 13 5 4 1 0 1
Gwent 12 0 1 2 2 0 4 0 2 1 0 0
Hampshire 5 0 0 2 0 0 3 0 0 0 0 0
Hertfordshire 9 0 1 6 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0
Humberside 3 0 1 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0
Kent 4 0 1 1 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 0
Lancashire 7 0 0 0 4 0 3 0 0 0 0 0
Leicestershire 15 0 2 2 0 0 6 4 1 0 0 0
Lincolnshire 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Merseyside 17 0 4 1 2 1 7 1 0 0 0 1
Metropolitan & City 43 0 9 7 5 4