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Victim commissioners urge inquiry after prosecutions for domestic abuse fall to new low and crimes rise

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Prosecutions for domestic violence have fallen to a record low, despite a near-doubling in the number of complaints by victims over the same period, figures from the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) show.

The victims’ and domestic abuse commissioners will this week write to the Home Secretary Priti Patel, Justice Secretary Robert Buckland and the Attorney General Suella Braverman urging them to launch an urgent investigation into why prosecution rates are falling so dramatically.

They will warn that victims of domestic violence are losing confidence in the ability of the criminal justice system to bring their attackers to justice.

The move will increase pressure on the CPS which is already under fire over the fall in rape convictions to a record low as sex crimes have reached their highest level. 

Police chiefs last week suggested that the bar for the standard of evidence required by the CPS to charge a suspect and get a case into court had been raised.

Women’s charities have complained the CPS weeds out “weak cases,” a charge it denies.

Charities said delays of up to 18 months in bringing domestic abusers before the courts and patchy specialist support for victims who may fear revenge attacks were key factors in up to 50 per cent deciding not to proceed with prosecutions after the original allegation.

Dame Vera Baird, victims’ commissioner, and Nicole Jacobs, domestic abuse commissioner, said: “We know the vast majority of victims and survivors never report to the police.

“It is so important we give them the confidence to feel that if they report, they will be protected and swift action will be taken to hold their perpetrators to account. How do we build this confidence in the light of these figures?”

The CPS figures show that the number of prosecutions for domestic abuse have fallen by a third from 92,779 in 2014/15 to 61,169 in the 12 months to March this year.

They were down 22 per cent in the last year, from 78,624 in 2018/19.

At the same time the number of cases referred to the CPS by police for domestic abuse also fell, from 126,461 in 2014/15 to 79,965 in 2019/20, which represents a 37 per cent reduction.

By contrast, the number of domestic abuse crimes recorded by the police over a similar period rose by 77 per from 421,865 to 746,219 in 2018/19.

In  a joint statement Dame Vera Baird, the victims’ commissioner, and Nicole Jacobs, the domestic abuse, commissioner, said: “It is vital that the criminal justice system responds effectively to domestic abuse to keep victims and survivors safe and bring perpetrators to justice.

“The 22 per cent fall in prosecutions in the latest year to be reported is deeply concerning, as it is steeper than previous years and suggests the decline in the prosecution rate is accelerating...it is difficult to understand why.

“The Domestic Abuse Bill progressing through Parliament holds promise to transform the experience of victims and survivors of domestic abuse. However, this Bill will fail to achieve the transformation we all want to see if perpetrators are simply not being prosecuted for their crimes.”

Suzanne Jacob, chief executive of charity SafeLives, said the CPS and courts had yet to make the same strategic change in approach to domestic abuse as police had done in supporting victims.

“The average waiting time for a court case on domestic abuse is getting longer. If you are frightened of someone or trying to move on with your life, none of that is conducive to your staying in the criminal justice system if you also see paltry sentences for offenders,” she said.

The CPS said it was working closely with police and the courts to implement a “best practice” framework to improve “the entire criminal justice response” to domestic abuse.

“We take these cases extremely seriously and remain determined to all we can to bring perpetrators to justice and provide victims with the greatest possible protection from repeat offending.

“We are in ongoing discussions with our police colleagues locally and nationally about emerging trends in the criminal justice response to domestic abuse, and how we can best work together to address any concerns and geographical variations.”