Wick family welcome 'critical and damning' report on police complaints
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THE family of a young Caithness man, whose body was found in Wick harbour over 23 years ago, has welcomed "a critical and damning report" into how complaints against the police are handled.
June and Hugh Mcleod, the parents of 24 year-old, Kevin Mcleod and his uncle, Allan Mcleod, said the report by former Scotland Lord Advocate, Dame Elish Angiolini, shows the existing procedures are "not fit for purpose."
Her report makes 81 recommendations on how investigations into the police are carried out as well as on issues such as race and diversity. The Mcleods now want the Scottish Government to implement them "without delay".
They claim the investigations into Kevin's death in February 1997 were flawed from the start and believe he was murdered because of the injuries on his body but the police say his death was a tragic accident.
Speaking on behalf of the family, Allan Mcleod, said: "Dame Elish recommends that misconduct hearings for all ranks of officers should be heard by an independent panel and officers who retire or resign during an investigation of gross misconduct must still be held accountable. These changes are exactly what we have been campaigning for.
"This critical and damning report, we believe, proves what we have been saying for years – that Scottish police are a law unto themselves and that their complaints system is clearly not fit for purpose. We need to see police justice done."
Mr Mcleod said the family is "extremely pleased " with the report and stated: "We are happy that Dame Elish has recommended that officers must still be pursed for gross misconduct even after they have left the force. This, we have been campaigning for since 2003 after Northern Constabulary’s deputy chief constable, Keith Cullen, retired just days before a disciplinary relating to the mishandling of our complaints, leaving us years later still seeking the truth.
"The main issue of this review, we believe, is trust. Does anyone trust police investigating police? We don't. However, these recommendations must be implemented to ensure that no other family in Scotland will be treated with contempt or suffer the denials and lies that we had experienced by police over the past two decades. We suspect the mishandling of complaints in Kevin’s case, along with other cases, were instrumental in the setting up of this review.
"We were also glad to see that she has recommended that the Police Investigations and Review Commissioner (PIRC) be given more powers, as up to now their remit was completely worthless."
Dame Elish said: "Over the last two years I have received detailed written submissions in response to my call for evidence from the public for which I am very grateful. I met with many members of the public who had experience of making complaints against the police, including one tragic case which related to events many years ago."
She will be appearing before the Scottish Parliament Justice Sub‑Committee on Policing to give evidence on her report on Monday, December 7.
