Female victims of homicide 1044/2024

FOI Reference: 1044/2024

Request:

1. a list of all female victims of homicide killed between 1 September 2019 and 1 September 2024 (inclusive) which your authority has been responsible for investigating and, for each victim:

the date of the homicide;

the names and ages of the victims;

the name and ages of the accused / perpetrator; the relationship between the accused and the victim; the sex of the accused / perpetrator; if identified, the way in which the victim was killed;

2. clarification that of those perpetrators, how many had been released on police bail at the time the offence was committed?

Also, if possible, we would appreciate the following information:

3. whether there were any previous reports from the victim (or any third party) regarding the accused / perpetrator;
4. and whether there were any previous reports and / or convictions of any other offences related to violence against women perpetrated by the accused / perpetrator.

However, if you are unable to provide information on points 3 and 4, please provide information on the 1st and 2nd points only.

Response:

I can confirm that Dyfed-Powys Police does hold the information requested. However, some of that information has been withheld under Section 30(1)(a) Investigations and Proceedings conducted by Public Authorities and Section 38(1)(a) Health & Safety.

Explanation of the applied exemptions:

Section 1 of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (FOIA) places two duties on public authorities. Unless exemptions apply, the first duty at Section 1(1)(a) is to confirm or deny whether the information specified in a request is held. The second duty at Section 1(1)(b) is to disclose information that has been confirmed as being held. Where exemptions are relied upon, Section 17 of Freedom of Information Act requires that we provide the applicant with a notice which:

a) States that fact

b) Specifies the exemption(s) in question and

c) State (if that would not otherwise be apparent) why the exemption applies

I can confirm that Dyfed-Powys Police does hold the information that you have requested. However, we are withholding some of the information since we consider that the following exemptions apply to it:

Section 30(1)(a) Investigations and Proceedings conducted by Public Authorities

Section 38(1)(a) Health & Safety

The Section 30 exemption is a class-based qualified exemption. This means that the legislators when writing the legislation considered that the release of such information under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 would cause harm to the public authority or individual concerned. There is therefore no requirement to carry out a HARM Test in respect of such information. However, there is a requirement to carry out a Public Interest Test in order to establish whether the public interest in maintaining the exemption may be outweighed by a wider public benefit in disclosure.

The Section 38 exemption is a prejudice-based qualified exemption. There is therefore a requirement to carry out a HARM Test in respect of such information and there is a requirement to carry out a Public Interest Test in order to establish whether the public interest in maintaining the exemption may be outweighed by a wider public benefit in disclosure.

Section 30(1)(a) Investigations and Proceedings conducted by Public Authorities:

(1) Information held by a public authority is exempt information if it has at any time been held by the authority for the purposes of -

(a) Any investigation which the public authority has a duty to conduct with a view to it being ascertained (i) whether a person should be charged with an offence, or (ii) whether a person charged with an offence is guilty of it

Public Interest Test

Considerations favouring disclosure - Disclosure of the information would improve the public’s knowledge and understanding of the investigatory process and, as all police investigations are publicly funded, would show how public funds are being spent. Murder/homicide investigations are highly emotive and attract large media interest, therefore disclosure of the information would show the public that the investigation had been conducted properly.

Considerations favouring non-disclosure - This exemption covers information held at any time for the purpose of an investigation, whether the case is ongoing, closed or abandoned. In addition to this, there are already in place established procedures for disclosure when to do so would aid an investigation, for example an appeal for witnesses through media channels. Disclosure of the requested information would prejudice how investigations are carried out in the future, which in turn would undermine an individual’s right to a fair trial. This would hinder the prevention and detection of crime which would affect the forces future law enforcement capabilities.

Section 38(1)(a) Health & Safety:

(1) Information is exempt information if its disclosure under this Act would, or would be likely to –

(a) Endanger the physical or mental health of any individual,

Harm for Section 38

To release this information into the public domain at this stage, whereby detail to that level has not previously been disclosed by the force, could cause physical or mental harm to the health of any surviving relative of the deceased and to the offender(s) as to publish this information would create difficult and painful memories to family members at a time when those family members may well be within the healing process, through time, in coming to terms with what happened to their relative some time ago.

Public Interest Test

Considerations favouring disclosure - Disclosure of the information would lead to better informed public awareness on how the police conduct investigations and the use of public funds ensuring transparency in the activities of the public authority especially in high-profile cases such as murder where some information is already in the public domain.

Considerations favouring non-disclosure - Disclosure of the information would cause significant distress to the family. Releasing the information could also jeopardise the physical and mental well-being of members of the family who are only just coming to terms with events of the past in relation to such matters. Disclosure of the information would therefore result in a loss of confidence in the public authority to protect the well-being of the family and local community.

Balance Test for Section 30 & 38:

Disclosure under the Act is a disclosure to the world not just to the individual making the request. The proper detection, investigation and prosecution of crimes are cornerstones of a modern democratic society. The Police Service will never divulge information if it will hinder that core responsibility or affect the health and safety or well-being of individuals or groups of people. Although the way the Police conduct investigations, especially high-profile murder investigations, should be transparent and shared with the public they have a greater duty to protect the public from harm or distress. Therefore, in this case, the balance lies in favour of non-disclosure of the requested information.

Please note: As per your request, Questions 3 & 4 have not been answered, due to the fact that it would take the Force more than 18 hours to comply and would therefore entitle the Force to withhold the entire request, in accordance with Section 12 FOIA.                                                                                   

It should be noted that as a result of the systems adopted by Dyfed-Powys Police in relation to the recording of such information that the information released may or may not be accurate.

Furthermore, it should also be noted that Police forces in the United Kingdom are routinely required to provide crime statistics to government bodies and the recording criteria is set nationally. However, the systems used for recording these figures are not generic, nor are the procedures used locally in capturing the crime data. It should be noted that for these reasons this force's response to your questions should not be used for comparison purposes with any other response you may receive.

This is a response under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 and disclosed on 10/12/2024.