Police assaulted in line of duty to receive cash

Chief Reporter

Thursday 12 April 2012

CRIMINALS will be made to pay compensation to the thousands of police officers assaulted in the line of duty every year in Scotland.

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Lucy Adams Chief Reporter

Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill is expected to announce "restitution orders" which would see criminals found guilty of assaulting police pay cash to individual officers who have been injured or to good causes, such as the Police Benevolent Fund.

Ministers are also looking to introduce a victims' surcharge, to create a fund to help the victims of crime. It comes as new figures show that between January 1, 2010, and February 28 this year, 4890 people were convicted in Scotland of assaulting police officers.The crime is punishable in Scotland by imprisonment, a Community Payback Order, fine or a compensation order. Currently fines go direct to the Treasury. Compensation orders pass to the victims but there has been some concern that they are under-utilised. Restitution orders would offer a third way for compensation to go direct to good causes or individual officers. A Scottish Government source said: "Restitution orders could be paid direct to officers or to specific police charities."The final details will be decided following the consultation for the bill."It could go to an individual officer who has been assaulted, but ideally it would go to a fund for all police officers."Depending on the results of the consultation, it might be up to the judge to decide which police charity the money should go to."Ministers aim to bring forward legislation to create restitution orders and a victims' surcharge in the forthcoming Victims and Witnesses Bill, which will also contain a package of measures to support victims more generally.The amount offenders would have to pay could be set by the judge sentencing them or set in statute by the forthcoming bill. It would be in addition to compensation already paid direct to victims. Attacks on police officers have risen in recent years – with an average of 70 a day throughout the UK.In 2009 there were 6877 attacks on Scottish officers – up from 6270 the previous year.According to the Crown Office there were 6518 assaults in 2005-6 and 6469 in 2004-5. The police scheme could see the proceeds of restitution orders donated to charities to help injured officers back to work. Beneficiaries would include the Police Benevolent Fund and the Castlebrae treatment centre in Auchterarder, Perthshire.The Police Treatment Centre is a registered charity supported by voluntary donations from serving police officers primarily in the northern forces of England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, but also from British Transport Police, the Civil Nuclear Constabulary and the Ministry of Defence Police. Officers currently make a donation of £1.30 per week from their pay.The charity provides two centres, at Castlebrae and in Harrogate, North Yorkshire. Almost 4000 serving and retired officers attend the centres each year and most receive intensive physiotherapy.Others seek support with stress-related conditions and some attend for reasons of respite or to recuperate following an illness or operation.The Police Benevolent Fund offers financial support to members and former members of the service, their families and dependants.

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Police assaulted in line of duty to receive cash

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