Police in Yorkshire failed rape and sexual assault victims after incorrectly writing off their reports, figures reveal

Data obtained through Freedom of Information from the region's four police forces show that seven out of 81 rapes (nine per cent) which were cancelled for various reasons had been incorrectly dismissed.

Some 16 per cent of all other sexual offences cancelled had also been wrongly dismissed, while one Yorkshire force failed 20 per cent of rape complainants and 40 per cent of sexual offence complainants whose cases were cancelled.

Police forces will cancel recorded crimes if they believe an offence did not actually occur.

The data, disclosed by Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary following inspections of the forces, showed that in 30 cases out of 156 where crimes were cancelled, police did not even tell the victim.

Charity Rape Crisis described the failings as "completely unacceptable", as the figures follow news this week that fewer than one in seven alleged rape victims feels confident of getting justice in reporting to police.

Katie Russell, spokeswoman for the charity and founder of Support After Rape and Sexual Violence Leeds (SARSVL), said: “The majority of people subjected to these crimes still don’t have the confidence to report to the police, but despite increasing numbers who are choosing to come forward, charging, prosecution and convictions rates are at an all-time low, while the overwhelming majority of rapists and sexual offenders are walking free.

“Especially considering the wide-ranging, significant and often lifelong impacts of sexual violence and abuse on victims and survivors, these criminal justice failings are completely unacceptable. People who have been through such considerable trauma simply need and deserve better."

Alongside rape and sexual offences, the figures also showed 10 out of 80 cancelled reports of violent offences and eight out of 49 cancelled robbery reports should have been fully investigated.

Humberside Police incorrectly cancelled four rape allegations and eight sexual offence reports, accounting for 20 and 40 per cent of cancelled reports respectively, and were rated as "Requires Improvement" in a 2018 HMIC crime data integrity inspection.

West Yorkshire Police wrongly cancelled one rape allegation out of 19 (five per cent) and one sexual offence out of 18 (six per cent), according to findings also from a 2018 inspection. Despite this, the force was rated as "Outstanding" in its most recent inspection.

South Yorkshire Police incorrectly cancelled one rape allegation out of 18 (five per cent), one sexual offence out of 20 (also five per cent) according to an inspection in 2018 rating the force as "Requires Improvement". However, a subsequent inspection of the force this year found clear improvement.

North Yorkshire Police wrongly cancelled one out of 22 rape allegations (five per cent) and three out of 22 sexual offences (14 per cent), and was rated "Good" in the 2019 inspection.

A spokesman for the National Police Chiefs' Council (NPCC) said forces “never close a case if they are merely unclear as to whether a crime happened or not”.

The spokesman said: “We are working to further improve the accuracy of crime reporting, which is governed by detailed counting rules set out by the Home Office.”

Detective Chief Superintendent Scott Young at Humberside said: “During the 2018 inspection, HMIC Inspectors did identify a number of cases in which they advised that the decision to cancel a crime was found to be incorrect.

“We took immediate action to remedy this, reviewing each case. I want to stress that this review was specifically concerned about the quality of the record keeping, not the level of victim care. There was no suggestion by HMIC that any victims had been let down or not supported by our officers. We did however ensure that victim care and support was central to this review.

Phil Cain, Deputy Chief Constable for North Yorkshire Police, said: “We were pleased to receive an overall grading of ‘good’ by HMIC in our most recent Crime Data Integrity inspection, but we acknowledge that in a small number of cases the decision to cancel a crime was found to be incorrect.

“Following the inspection, these crimes were reinstated and reviewed to ensure the victims received the service and support they rightly expect and deserve."

Temporary Assistant Chief Constable Oz Khan of West Yorkshire Police said: "We support the HMICFRS findings, and acknowledge the small number of crimes cancelled incorrectly in 2018. We have reviewed these crimes and taken steps to ensure that the victims have received the service they should rightly expect from West Yorkshire Police.

"There are many circumstances where crimes are properly cancelled, and we are confident that processes now in place will prevent a recurrence. These eight mis-cancelled crimes sit in the context of the force recording over 269,000 crimes each year."

South Yorkshire Police Assistant Chief Constable Lauren Poultney said: “These crimes were re-opened and investigated to ensure the victims involved received the service we pride ourselves on delivering and were safeguarded appropriately.

“We reviewed and revised our administrative processes to address this issue and in an inspection held earlier this year HMICFRS reported that we now have a robust system and very effective process for dealing with crime cancellations.”

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