Question reference: S5W-33757
- Asked by: Alison Johnstone, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Green Party
- Date lodged: 3 December 2020
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Current status: Answered by James Wolffe QC on 17 December 2020
Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many incidents involving snaring have been reported to the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service in Scotland in each calendar year since 2017, also broken down by how many subsequent (a) prosecutions and (b) convictions there were.
Answer
On receipt of a case from a reporting agency, the Procurator Fiscal will decide what action may be taken in the public interest with reference to the published Prosecution Code. Prosecutorial action may only be taken where there is sufficient evidence in law. Prosecutorial action in the public interest includes Direct Measures as alternatives to prosecution.
All reports of wildlife crime, including snaring related offences, are considered by specialist prosecutors in the Wildlife and Environmental Crime Unit (WECU). Each case is carefully considered on its own merits taking into account the full facts and circumstances and available evidence, including the outcome of any further investigations that may have been instructed. Prosecutorial action will be taken where there is sufficient admissible evidence and it is in the public interest to do so. The full range of direct measures is available to specialist prosecutors in WECU for use in appropriate cases.
The outcomes of relevant charges reported to COPFS are provided in the following table:
Charges Reported to COPFS - Calendar Year 2017, 2018, 2019 & 2020 (to 30 November 2020) under:- | ||||||
WILDLIFE COUNTRYSIDE ACT 1981 Section 11 A, B, C, D & E (Snaring) | ||||||
Calendar Year Reported | ||||||
Action taken re Accused | Action taken re Charge | Outcome | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 |
Total Charges Reported | 8 | 9 | 20 | 3 | ||
No Action Total | 3 | 0 | 7 | 0 | ||
Direct Measure | Direct Measure | 4 | 1 | 13 | 0 | |
Direct Measure | Not Separately Actioned | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | |
Direct Measure Total | 5 | 2 | 13 | 2 | ||
Summary | Court | Convicted | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
Not Convicted | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | ||
Ongoing | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | ||
Not Separately Actioned | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | ||
Summary Total | 0 | 7 | 0 | 1 | ||
The majority of the charges marked “No Action”, were due to insufficient admissible evidence.
Notes and definitions
The total number of charges reported will also include charges where action was taken in relation to other charges reported in the case, for example, because the prosecutor took the view that an alternative charge was more appropriate or because details of the charge were included within the body of another charge for evidential reasons. These are shown as “Not Separately Actioned” on the table.
COPFS uses a live operational database and the information contained within it is structured accordingly.
Information provided may therefore be subject to change as our systems are updated for operational reasons.