Injuries following police contact

Freedom of Information Act request number: 22/3147

Version date: 27/01/2022

The Professional Standards Department have provided the following information:

I would like to be provided with the following information per calendar year from 2017, up to and including 2020 regarding serious injuries during or following police contact. I define serious injuries as ‘a fracture, a deep cut, a deep laceration or an injury causing damage to an internal organ or the impairment of any bodily function.’ If possible, please also provide information for the calendar year 2021. 

- How many allegations of serious injuries during or following police contact were made? 

- How many of these allegations resulted in a case to answer? 

- Of these, how many resulted in the police officer(s) being found guilty? 

- Of those cases which resulted in a guilty verdict, how many resulted in compensation and how much compensation was paid in each case? 

For each case, where possible and if it does not push my request over the limit, please share the police contact that resulted in the serious injury and the serious injury. 

For each case, please share the gender and race of the victim and perpetrator where known. 

Between 01/01/2017 and 31/12/2021, Devon & Cornwall Police Professional Standards Department recorded 390 incidents classified as "death or serious injury following police contact" (also referred to as DSIs)

31 DSI cases have an internal Conduct case recorded linked to them.

43 DSI cases from this period are still live therefore no outcomes are available for these cases.

For one of these cases, a "Case to Answer" determination was recorded. A police officer attended a misconduct meeting and received Management Advice in relation to an alleged breach of the Standards of Professional Behaviour namely Use of Force.

The officer is male. Their ethnicity is not recorded.

The member of public who was affected was male. Their ethnicity is not recorded.

No information is recorded on this case that relates to any compensation claims.