Failure by police forces to carry out criminal record checks under Clare's Law checks is putting the safety of women at risk, according to a recent report. During a six-month period, police forces in England and Wales are said to have rejected over 20,226 requests for background checks on suspected domestic abusers, a move which could put women at risk.
What is Clare’s Law?
Implemented in March 2014, the Domestic Violence Disclosure Scheme (DVDS), also known as "Clare's Law," allows police to disclose information to safeguard potential victims of domestic violence. The initiative was named after Clare Wood, who was tragically murdered by her ex-boyfriend. The idea of Clare’s Law is that a woman who is concerned about the past of a boyfriend or partner can go to the Police and ask them to make a disclosure about anything they hold on file about him. The Police will then disclose what they feel is relevant, such as allegations of violent or sexual crimes in the past. The Police are unlikely to choose to disclose other matters such as theft or driving offences which are not domestic violence related.
It is up to the person who has made the application to decide what to do with the information. They do not advise or make recommendations, just give the information and let the applicant decide.
Refusal of Applications Under Clare’s Law
One poignant example highlighted by newspapers about failures under Clare’s Law involves Hilary Stinchcombe, who believes that her daughter and granddaughter's lives could have been saved if the police had disclosed what they knew under Clare’s Law. Laura Mortimer, along with her 11-year-old daughter Ella Dalby, was brutally attacked by Mortimer's partner, Christopher Boon, in May 2018. Boon had a history of assaulting partners, yet Gloucester police reportedly denied the family's application for disclosure about previous domestic violence offences. Newspapers also report that the picture is not consistent across different police forces. Although the overall disclosure rate has fallen from 48% to 38.5% overall, there are some police forces which release information in 25% of cases.
Similarly, some forces are taking weeks, or even months to comply with requests for information. It takes on average 90 days for police on Merseyside to get back to an applicant with any information which they have, despite the fact that under Clare’s Law, police are supposed to report back within 28 days at the most. Wiltshire police also came under heavy criticism for an extensive backlog in cases, dating back several years.
What is The Difference Between DBS and Clare’s Law?
Anyone can request a DBS check on themselves, but this will only ever reveal convictions and cautions held on the police computer which are not considered to be spent. Clare’s Law disclosures will only reveal convictions or cautions which are relevant to domestic violence, not someone’s entire record. The police, depending on the situation, might also choose to disclose matter such as reports, arrests and allegations which never progressed as far as court.
