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30
Sept 2022
Scrutiny of North Yorkshire Police use of force 'not good enough', say inspectors
Scrutiny of North Yorkshire Police’s use of force in custody is “not good enough”, say inspectors.
An inspection report by His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services found that scrutiny and quality assurance could not show that force used was “necessary, justified and proportionate”.
Inspectors also found that recording in custody records was “often poor” and important information, including reasons for decisions such as the removal of clothing, is “sometimes missing”.
They added that a review of CCTV found that incidents "weren’t always managed well, and techniques weren’t always used correctly”.
In a report published today, inspectors said:
However, the report did find that officers interacted respectfully with detainees and were "patient and reassuring".
It also found that the standard of care offered by custody staff to detainees was "very good".
The inspection was carried out into the force’s custody suites during June and July this year. There are custody suites in York, Harrogate and Scarborough
In the report, inspectors raised two causes for concern which included scrutiny of use of force and managing detainee risk.
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Recommendations were made to improve scrutiny of use of force and to mitigate the risk of detainees in custody.
Police response
In response to the report, Elliot Foskett, North Yorkshire's assistant chief constable (pictured above), said:
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