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Serious Prevention Orders Contents

Policy Statement ...... 2 Principles...... 2 Responsibilities...... 3 Police Officers and Police Staff ...... 3 Protective Services Crime – Offender Management Unit ...... 3 Senior Investigating Officer ...... 3 Crown Prosecution ...... 4 Serious Crime Prevention Order Officer ...... 4 Additional Information ...... 5

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Policy Statement

Summary West Yorkshire Police has a duty of care to protect the public from criminals where possible. By applying to the court, via the Crown Prosecution Service, for a Serious Crime Prevention Order (SCPO), the Force has the means to prevent, restrict or disrupt those criminals involved in serious crime.

SCPOs protect the public from criminals who are involved in serious crime or have been convicted of a serious qualifying offence, in particular: • people, arms or drugs trafficking; • and child sex; • armed ; • , counterfeiting, and ; • corruption and etc.

In the case of the: • High Court, the judge must be satisfied that the person has been involved in serious crime; and • , the person must have been convicted of a serious offence by that court or committed to that court following conviction of a serious offence by a Magistrates Court. In both cases, the courts must have reasonable grounds to believe: • that the order would protect the public; • there is a real risk that the person will be involved in further offences falling within the act and from which the public require protection.

Scope This policy applies to all police officers and police staff.

Principles

Principles West Yorkshire Police will: • Consider applying for an SCPO where a person has been charged with a schedule one offence and is likely to be sentenced to four years or more and the senior investigating officer will bring this to the attention of the reviewing lawyer during the charging advice process, if appropriate. • Pursue SCPOs mainly against key nominals within organised crime groups (OCGs) to prevent or restrict their criminal activity on their release. These orders should not be just restricted to OCG management. Also, other court orders exist for managing serious offenders, e.g. gang orders or civil orders for managing sex offenders. • Propose restrictions which are specific to the proven circumstances of the offending.

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• Inform the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) at the outset that an application is being considered as they are the body who make the application. • Demonstrate that, if successful, the order can be managed for its five year life by e.g. an integrated offender management team or lead responsible officer (LRO) for the OCG. • Arrest and bail any individual who breaches their order, for a CPS charge sanction, punishable with a return to custody and possible extension of the SCPO’s five year period.

Responsibilities Police Officers and Police Staff

Responsibilities Police officers and police staff are responsible for: • Putting forward suitable offenders they have identified and can that a SCPO would be appropriate.

Protective Services Crime – Offender Management Unit

Responsibilities The Offender Management Unit is responsible for: • Assisting in identifying suitable offenders.

Senior Investigating Officer

Responsibilities Senior investigating officers are responsible for: • Communicating with the CPS reviewing lawyer at the earliest opportunity as a priority where a person has been charged with a schedule one offence and is likely to be sentenced to four years or more. • Proposing proportionate and evidence based prohibitions, restrictions or conditions which are compatible with each other and specific to that person’s method of offending as well as when these provisions should start. • Ensuring the wording of the order is stated clearly and in plain English so that the offender easily understands the prohibition applied for. • Completing a referral form, justification schedule and Notice of to Apply for a SCPO if the defendant is convicted of a serious offence (see supporting information for a template for this). • Introducing bad character evidence, where appropriate. • Applying to the original court which made the SCPO in order to vary any of the prohibitions, restrictions or conditions.

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Crown Prosecution Service

Responsibilities The CPS is responsible for: • Making the evidential case supporting the SCPO application on the Force’s behalf which will be signed by the Director of Public Prosecutions.

Serious Crime Prevention Order Officer

Responsibilities SCPO officers are responsible for: • Serving a signed copy of the order on the offender on their release from prison. • Explaining their responsibilities regarding the order, in the presence of their probation officer, as soon as possible after their release. • Ensuring the offender notifies them in writing of all the details required by the order as well as any amendment to the detail with seven days of the change being made and providing them with a contact address for this purpose.

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Additional Information

Compliance This policy complies with the following legislation and guidance: • as amended by the • APP Organised crime

Supporting The supporting information for this policy can be accessed via this link. information

Policy Database Administration

Item Details Document title: Serious Crime Prevention Orders Owner: Protective Services Crime Author / Reviewer: Date of last review: 06/04/2018 Date of next review: 06/04/2019 The Equality and Human Rights Assessment for this policy is held on Force Registry which can be accessed via this link.

The table below details revision information relating to this document: Topic title Date

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