Domestic abusers will be electronically tagged on leaving prison under government pilot to protect victims
Domestic abusers will be forced to wear electronic tags on leaving prison or risk being sent back to detention under a pilot scheme launched by the government to protect victims.
Up to 500 people will be made to wear the devices, which can monitor their whereabouts, enforce a curfew and ban them from going within a certain distance of a victim’s home.
The pilot will launch in the East and West Midlands before it is rolled out across England and Wales next year, the Ministry of Justice said.
Nicole Jacobs, the domestic abuse commissioner for England and Wales, welcomed the pilot as a “positive step forwards in protecting victims”.
“By blocking perpetrators from contacting victims, the Unwanted Prisoner Contact scheme sets an important standard that the criminal justice system will not be used to further domestic abuse, making a difference for survivors’ safety, recovery, and freedom from abuse,” she said.
“For too long, the onus has been on victims of domestic abuse to protect themselves from harm.”
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Lord Chancellor and Justice Secretary Alex Chalk said: “Survivors of domestic abuse show great strength and bravery in coming forward, and it is right that every tool is used to protect them from further harm.
“The tagging of prison leavers at risk of committing further domestic abuse is a further protection we are introducing to help victims rebuild their lives and feel safe in their communities.”
But Labour’s shadow justice secretary Steve Reed said the government had a “shameful record of ignoring domestic abuse”.
“This pilot is a pathetic effort to stem the rising tide of violence against women and girls that has skyrocketed on their watch,” he said.
“They’ve stood idly by as domestic violence has more than doubled since 2015 yet the number of prosecutions has plummeted by half.”
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Officer ‘took advantage’ of woman
The development coincides with a special report by Sky News that revealed a police officer was able to take advantage of a domestic abuse survivor by having sex with her in a women’s refuge while on duty.
Shannon Mulhall was distressed and vulnerable when she called the police and was taken to the refuge – but when she arrived, one of the officers sent to protect her stripped naked and made sexual advances towards her.
Disgraced Humberside Police officer PC Simon Miller now faces years in jail after admitting the improper exercise of policing powers.
He becomes the latest in a line of police officers who have eroded public trust in the police through their actions.
Read more:
‘Chilling’ surge in use of tech to control abuse victims
Failures leave ‘potential victims at risk’
In a move that seeks to address the public’s concerns, the government announced on Thursday that it would give police more powers to sack rogue officers.
Police officers who are found guilty of gross misconduct will face automatic dismissal while those who fail vetting checks can also be fired.
The move comes following a series of scandals engulfing the police, including the murder of Sarah Everard by serving Metropolitan Police officer Wayne Couzens and the unmasking of former police constable David Carrick as a serial abuser and rapist.
Metropolitan Police Commissioner Mark Rowley, who had been pushing for changes to police regulations to make it easier to sack rogue officers, welcomed the development.
“I’m grateful to the government for recognising the need for substantial change that will empower chief officers in our fight to uphold the highest standards and restore confidence in policing,” he said.
A 15-year-old boy has died after “getting into difficulty” in a lake in southeast London, police say.
Officers and paramedics were called shortly after 3pm on Friday to Beckenham Place Park in Lewisham.
The Metropolitan Police said a boy “was recovered from the lake” at around 10.42pm the same day.
“He was taken to hospital where he was sadly pronounced dead. His death is being treated as unexpected but not believed to be suspicious,” according to the force.
The boy’s family has been told and are being supported by specialist officers.
The force originally said the child was 16 years old, but has since confirmed his age as 15.
In the earlier statement, officers said emergency services carried out a search and the park was evacuated.
Emergency teams were called to Beckenham Place Park on Friday afternoon
Beckenham Place Park, which borders the London borough of Bromley, covers around 240 acres, according to the park’s website.
The lake is described as 285 metres long, reaching depths of up to 3.5 metres.
It is designed as a swimming lake for open-water swimming and paddle boarding.
A London Ambulance Service spokesperson said on Friday: “We were called at 3.02pm this afternoon to reports of a person in the water.
“We sent resources to the scene, including an ambulance crew, an incident response officer and members of our hazardous area response team.”
Emergency teams have not explained how the boy entered the water, or whether he was accompanied by others.
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