Police criticised for 'inconsistent' use of Tasers and body cameras across forces

Use of Tasers and body cameras has been highlighted following the death of former football star Dalian Atkinson after he was Tasered in Telford

Two police officers wearing body cameras (Yui Mok/PA)

Police forces across the UK have been criticised for a “complete lack of consistency” in how they use body cameras and Tasers.

A new survey has found that despite leading officers describing the technology as “effective” and “vital” to modern policing, many forces have not completed a full roll-out and at least one has said it has no current plan to adopt the cameras, which record what happens when police officers are attending incidents.

A survey by the Press Association of the UK's 45 territorial forces has revealed a disjointed approach to equipping officers with body-worn video (BWV). It is feared the disparity may result in chaotic and contradictory approaches to the issue.

The issue has been highlighted following the death of former football star Dalian Atkinson after he was Tasered in Telford, Shropshire, on August 15.

A criminal investigation is under way, but following the 48-year-old's death it emerged that the officers involved, from West Mercia Police, had not been equipped with BWV.

Mr Atkinson's family has since called for all Taser-equipped officers to be issued with bodycams as standard.

Fabian Atkinson, nephew of the ex-Aston Villa player', said: “If they have a weapon and they're going to discharge that weapon, then they need a camera to record that.”

However, the College of Policing said there was “no specific guidance” for issuing armed officers with bodycams, although it did issue advice on BWV use in 2014.

The Independent Police Complaints Commission said two West Mercia officers are “under criminal investigation”, having been suspended and issued with gross misconduct notices.

Both the Home Office and the National Police Chiefs' Council (NPCC) have said the use of BWVs is an “operational” decision for each force.

But the chairman of the House of Commons Home Affairs Select Committee, Keith Vaz, said the “complete lack of consistency” across forces should “raise alarm bells”, especially in light of Mr Atkinson's death.

The Labour MP for Leicester East said: “We need transparency from forces and clear guidance from national bodies, but organisations like the College of Policing are still unable to provide the leadership needed on these difficult issues.

”In the light of recent events, the Home Office must take action to ensure there is a far more co-ordinated national approach to the use of Tasers, which should be treated with the same respect as firearms.

“It isn't right that crossing an arbitrary border within the UK would present you with completely separate policies on the use of potentially deadly weapons.”

In a separate case last year, an inquest jury found that the use of a Taser by Greater Manchester Police (GMP) officers had contributed to the death of 23-year-old Jordan Begley from a cardiac arrest in July 2013.

Afterwards, his mother, Dorothy Begley, called for bodycams to be routinely used by police.

The IPCC has recently sought a judicial review to overturn its own report into Mr Begley's death, which initially cleared GMP officers of any wrongdoing.

A Home Office spokesman said: “Body-worn video can be a powerful tool and we fully support exploiting new technology to help cut crime wherever possible.

He added: ”The College of Policing published interim operational guidance in July 2014 which recognises the role of BWV in supporting transparency, trust and confidence in the police.“

The national picture has revealed a spectrum of responses by forces on the issue.

In Leicestershire, all frontline officers are equipped with cameras, while in London the Metropolitan Police are rolling out 22,000 cameras in a programme which is expected to be complete by summer 2017.

Surrey Police are reviewing use of bodycams for firearms officers, while City of London Police said they will be equipping firearms teams with the technology ”before the end of the year“.

That contrasts with the position of North Yorkshire Police who said that while they have used bodycams ”to a limited degree“ in the past, they were not currently investing in the technology, although they would keep the decision under consideration.

Greater Manchester Police (GMP) will have 3,000 cameras in use by the end of the year, given to officers in neighbourhood teams, hostage and crisis negotiation, roads policing and intercept, tactical aid, and tactical dog units, and at the airport.

West Mercia is among some forces who have said there are still issues with the technology, including Devon and Cornwall Police, who said they needed to solve a ”data storage“ problem before considering uptake of BWV.

Other forces like Sussex, Gwent, Lincolnshire and Staffordshire have moved ahead with bodycams.

Police use of Tasers, which are intended as a non-lethal weapon, went up slightly last year, with 10,329 uses by forces in England and Wales, a 2% rise on the previous year. However, of those, 19% (1,921) were discharges - a decrease of 3% from the previous year.

Richard Bennett, uniformed policing lead at the College of Policing, said: ”As the professional body for policing, the college supports forces with training on conducted energy devices (Taser), which is amongst the longest and most comprehensive in the world.

“We issued guidance on body-worn video and carried out two extensive trials to examine how effective it is in areas including domestic abuse, stop and search, arrests and police complaints.

“Although forces make decisions independently, the trial evidence has shown body-worn video can reduce the number of allegations against officers and forces can use this evidence to inform operational decisions to purchase new technology.

”Through the development of guidance, the college is providing national leadership to increase consistency in the level of service received by the public across the country.“

National Police Chiefs' Council deputy assistant commissioner Neil Basu said the use of Taser and BWV is agreed with chief officers at a national level in England and Wales.

He said: ”I fully support the use of body worn video, in particular when officers are deployed with Taser, to maximise transparency and accountability. Each police force is operationally independent and this is ultimately a decision for the local chief constable."

With additional reporting by PA