Scottish Government

RECORDED CRIME IN SCOTLAND, 2002

1. Introduction

1.1 This bulletin presents statistics on crimes and offences recorded and cleared up by the eight Scottish police forces in 2002. It forms part of The Scottish Executive series of statistical bulletins on the criminal justice system. Statistics of crimes and offences recorded by the police provide a measure of the volume of crime with which the police are faced.

Chart 1 Crimes and offences recorded by the police 1930 - 2002

2. Recorded crime and offences: Main points: Scotland

• The number of crimes recorded by the police increased slightly between 2001 and 2002, following decreases in the last two years. In 2002, the Scottish police recorded 427,000 crimes, an increase of 1 per cent on the 2001 figure. The number of recorded crimes in 2002 was 2 per cent higher than the ten year low figure of 420,600 in 1997 but was 25 per cent lower than the peak 1991 figure.
• This 1 per cent increase in recorded crime in Scotland is more than accounted for by increases in "Other" crimes, mostly drugs crimes, possession of an offensive weapon and bail offences. Increases in drugs crimes and crimes of possession of an offensive weapon reflect pro-active police efforts against drugs and violence. The increase in the bail offences mainly relate to breaches of bail conditions and the police perception is that courts are attaching more conditions to bail orders, with consequential increases in breaches.

Chart 2 Crimes recorded by the police by crime group, 1971-2002

• The number of non-sexual crimes of violence recorded by the police increased by 9 per cent between 2001 and 2002, to total 16,500. Recorded cases of "serious assault etc." increased by 5 per cent to 7,600. The number of recorded cases of "robbery" increased by 17 per cent to number 4,900 in 2002.
• The number of crimes in the indecency group increased by 9 per cent to number 6,600 in 2002 but numbers are still below the levels observed in 1997 and 1998. Within this group recorded cases of rape & attempted rape increased by 21 per cent to reach 900, the highest number ever recorded. Cases of indecent assault increased by 16 per cent to total 1,300 whilst the number of crimes of lewd and indecent behaviour increased by 15 per cent to stand at 2,700 in 2002. The number of crimes recorded in the "other" sub-group decreased by 8 per cent from 1,700 to 1,600.
• The number of crimes of dishonesty decreased for the third consecutive year (by 2 per cent) to stand at 235,700 cases in 2002. The number of housebreakings fell by 2 per cent and the decrease in 2002 reflected decreases in both domestic and non-domestic premises. The total number of housebreakings during 2002 is less than half the number recorded in the early 1990s. The number of crimes decreased in virtually all categories of crimes of dishonesty; however recorded cases of theft from a motor vehicle by opening a lockfast place increased for the first time since this category was separately identified in 1992 and now stands at 32,100.
• Recorded cases of vandalism (including fire-raising and malicious mischief) increased by 1 per cent to total 95,500 in 2002. This increase is more than accounted for by improved recording of minor crimes of vandalism in Dumfries and Galloway, Lothian and Borders and Tayside. A High Court ruling on crimes of fire raising has led to a switch in recording practices. Many cases, which previously would have been recorded as vandalism, are now recorded as fire raising. This explains the large increase in fire raising of 31 per cent and the corresponding small decrease in other vandalisms.
• Within the other crimes group crimes of "handling an offensive weapon" increased by 12 per cent to 9,700 reflecting sustained efforts by the police to tackle the culture of violence, with more people being found to have an offensive weapon in their possession and being charged with this. Recorded drugs crimes increased by 12 per cent to 40,400 in 2002. Within the drugs group, recorded cases of supply and possession with intent to supply decreased slightly from 10,200 in 2001 to 10,100 in 2002 and recorded cases of possession increased by 16 per cent from 25,600 in 2001 to 29,800 in 2002. This reflects targeted police campaigns against drugs.
• The number of crimes cleared up by the police rose slightly from 189,000 in 2001 to 196,100 in 2002. The crime clear-up rate rose from 45 per cent in 2001 to 46 per cent (a new post war record) in 2002.
• In 2002 the police recorded 508,900 offences, a decrease of 3 per cent compared with the 2001 figure.

3. Main points: Recorded crime by police force (Tables 4 and 5)

Total crime increased in six of the eight Scottish police forces with Strathclyde and Grampian showing decreases of 2 per cent and 4 per cent respectively.

• Central

The number of crimes in Central police force increased overall by 8 per cent between 2001 and 2002 to total 18,300.

• Dumfries & Galloway

The number of crimes in Dumfries & Galloway increased by 30 percent between 2001 and 2002 to total 10,000. Dumfries and Galloway Constabulary have described the factors underlying this 30 per cent increase in crime in 2002. This largely reflects the relatively low levels of crime recorded in 2001. In the first half of 2001, the visibility of the police was high with both police and army personnel out in abundance due to foot and mouth being widespread across the region and therefore the crime rate was lower than may normally be expected. This seems to have particularly affected crimes of dishonesty; the numbers of such crimes recorded in 2001 were 14% lower than in 2000. Another factor in the increase in crimes of dishonesty in 2002 was two high profile fraud and embezzlement cases, which accounted for a significant number of the crimes of dishonesty recorded. Most of the remainder of the increase in crime in Dumfries & Galloway is accounted for by increases in crimes of vandalism where, following an HMIC inspection, the audit procedures were changed resulting in better recording of lesser crimes of vandalism.

Chart 3 Total number of crimes recorded per 10,000 population in 2002 by police force area

• Fife

The number of crimes in Fife police force increased by 4 per cent between 2001 and 2002 to total 28,800. There was a 24 per cent increase in non-sexual crimes of violence with much of the rise attributed to an increase in "threats and extortion" within the "other non sexual crimes of violence" crime category. This relates to a substantial growth of persistent threatening phone calls.

• Grampian

The number of recorded crimes in Grampian decreased by 4 per cent between 2001 and 2002 to total 41,800 crimes.

• Lothian & Borders

Recorded crime in Lothian and Borders increased by 6 per cent to total 82,100. The largest contributors to the increase were in the "fire raising and vandalism" category and the "other crime" category. The increase in the number of vandalisms has been attributed by Lothian and Borders police to a change in recording practice. Previously before a crime could be recorded there had to be evidence that the damage was caused by a wilful or reckless act. Lothian and Borders police now record vandalism taking a more victim based approach whereby details of alleged crimes are taken at face value. The number of non-sexual crimes of violence increased by 23 per cent, mostly arising from increases in "threats and extortion" due to cases of threatening telephone calls or text messages. The number of "crimes of indecency" increased by 37 per cent. This has been attributed, in part, to recording of historic crimes and also to an increasing number of "indecent assault" incidents in relation to children or young people in response to police efforts to raise awareness of sexual abuse and encourage child victims to make disclosures. There was also an increase in the number of "prostitution" offences following the cessation in November 2001 of a discretionary policy operating in a defined area in Leith, North Edinburgh.

• Northern

There was a 2 per cent increase in the number of recorded crimes in Northern between 2001 and 2002, reflecting increasing numbers of crimes of dishonesty. The total number of crimes recorded in 2002 was 14,000.

• Strathclyde

The number of recorded crimes in Strathclyde decreased by 2 per cent between 2001 and 2002 to total 199,900.

• Tayside

The number of recorded crimes in Tayside increased by 7 per cent in 2002 to total 32,100 in 2001. Almost half of Tayside's increase in crimes were in the "crimes of dishonesty" category. A 37 per cent increase in crimes of indecency has been attributed, at least partially, to pro-active police work with women's support groups to encourage the reporting of such crimes. There was a relatively small increase in vandalism; almost exclusively attributable to improved recording of minor incidents of vandalism.

Chart 4 Number of crimes of domestic housebreaking recorded by the police per 10,000 population in 2002

4. Main points: Scottish Crime Survey

4.1 The preceding sections of this bulletin described the volume and types of crime recorded and cleared up by the eight police forces in Scotland during 2001. The recorded crime series is a useful indicator of trends in recorded crime. However, not all crimes are reported to the police and, of those crimes that are, not all are subsequently recorded (if the police are of the opinion that a crime has not taken place). The propensity of the public to report crime to the police also changes over time. Thus, statistics recorded by the police may not accurately reflect the underlying trend in all crime.

4.2 Crime surveys can be a useful source of information by providing a fuller picture of the extent of and trends in most types of household and personal victimisation. The information provided by such surveys complements the information compiled by the police forces and provides another useful indicator as well as exploring other issues such as the impact of crime on victims, public anxieties and reactions to crime and attitudes towards the police. The Survey has been run again in 2003 in relation to crimes and offences experienced in 2002. The results should be available towards the end of the year and will provide points of comparison with some of the figures provided in this Bulletin.

4.3 Findings from the 2000 SCS are summarised in bullet form below. Further details can be

found in Crime and Criminal Justice Research Findings No. 51 "The 2000 Scottish Crime

Survey: " First Results" and " The 2000 Scottish Crime Survey: Overview Report".

• Estimates derived from the 2000 SCS suggest that in 1999 just over 840,000 crimes were committed against individuals and private households in Scotland. This was 13 per cent less than the number of crimes in 1995 estimated from the 1996 SCS.
• Over 60 per cent of crimes experienced in 1999 were against property and of these about half involved motor vehicles. Vehicle-related crime (vandalism, thefts and attempted thefts of and from cars) fell by 30 per cent from approximately 337,600 crimes in 1995 to approximately 237,600 in 1999.
• Only certain categories of crime are directly comparable between the SCS figures and the police statistics. For the sub-set of comparable crimes which can be compared with the police recorded crime statistics, namely vandalism, housebreaking, theft of a motor vehicle, theft of a bicycle, robbery and assault, an estimated 33 per cent of SCS crimes ended up in the statistics of crimes recorded by the police in 1999. This was slightly below the proportion in 1995 (37 per cent).
• Between 1995 and 1999 there was a very significant drop in relatively minor crimes of dishonesty. The crime categories of "theft from a motor vehicle" and "other household theft" fell to 56 per cent of the 1995 level. This implies a decline of around 15 per cent per year.
• Survey estimates suggest that the number of violent crimes (assault and robbery) increased by 33 per cent between 1995 and 1999, although this increase was not statistically significant. Part of the increase was attributable
  to the addition of a new "screener question" on domestic abuse in the 2000 survey which increased the estimates of violent crime by approximately 10 per cent.

5. Appendix of tables

Table 1 Crimes recorded by the police, 1993-2002
Table 2 Offences recorded by the police, 1993-2002
Table 3 Crimes and offences cleared up by the police as a percentage of those recorded, 1993-2002
Table 4a Crimes and offences recorded by police force area, 2002
Table 4b Crimes and offences recorded by police force area per 10,000 population, 2002
Table 5 Crimes and offences recorded per 10,000 population, percentage change in total number recorded and percentage cleared up by police force area, 2002
Table 6 Number of crimes recorded by the police and percentage cleared up by council area, 2002
Table 7 Number of crimes recorded by the police per 10,000 population and crime index, by council area, 2002
Table 8 Number of crimes recorded by the police, rate per 10,000 population and index of rate for selected crimes by council area, 2002
Table A1Crimes and offences recorded and cleared up by the police, 1998 - 2002
Table A2 Crimes of indecency recorded by the police, 1993 - 2002
Table A3 Theft by housebreaking (including attempts and housebreaking with intent) 1994 - 2002
Table A4 Theft by housebreaking (including attempts and housebreaking with intent) by police force area, 2002
Table A5 Theft of and from motor vehicles recorded by the police, 1993 - 2002
Table A6 Drugs crimes recorded by the police, 1993 - 2002
Table A7 Racially aggravated offences (including harassment and conduct) by police force area, 1999 - 2002

6. Notes on statistics used in this bulletin

Returns

6.1 The statistical return from which most of the figures in this bulletin are taken is a simple count of the numbers of crimes and offences recorded and cleared up by the police. Only returns from the eight Scottish home forces are included in this bulletin. One return is made for each council in Scotland and these are aggregated to give a national total. Amendments (such as the deletion of incidents found on investigation not to be criminal) which arise after the end of the year are not incorporated.

6.2 In 1993 information was collected for the first time from other police forces, such as the British Transport Police. This practice has been continued, but these figures have not been included in the main body of the bulletin. Thus, in addition to those crimes and offences referred to throughout the bulletin there were, in total, 4,800 crimes and 6,500 offences recorded by the British Transport Police, Ministry of Defence and UK Atomic Energy Authority in 2002. The crime clear-up rate was 39 per cent and the offences rate was 31 per cent.

6.3 The figures included in the motor vehicle offences group do not include stationary motor vehicle offences dealt with by the issue of a fixed penalty ticket (some 179,600 offences, mostly parking, in 2001). However, offences dealt with under the vehicle defect rectification scheme and offences for which the procurator fiscal offers a fixed penalty are included in the figures. In addition to this, moving traffic offences which are the subject of a police conditional offer of a fixed penalty are also included, e.g. speeding, traffic directions offences.

Recording issues

6.4 In one criminal incident, several crimes or offences may occur - e.g. a house may be broken into and vandalised and the occupants assaulted. In multiple offence incidents, all the offences are counted rather than one for the incident as a whole; that is, the counting system is offence based rather than incident based. An offence may have more than one victim - for example in robberies - and be committed by more than one offender - e.g. some assaults and housebreakings. (Note that for murder, attempted murder and culpable homicide, the number of crimes recorded is equal to the number of the victims). Thus the statistics in this bulletin are not directly comparable with statistics on action taken against offenders, as one offence may lead to several persons being charged. Equally, an offender may be charged with several offences. The statistics for recorded number of crimes given in this bulletin are also not directly comparable with statistics collected in England and Wales for the recorded number of notifiable offences. This is mainly due to differences in the counting rules; for notifiable offences the counting system is, wherever possible victim based rather than offence based. The Home Office introduced new counting rules for notifiable offences, and expanded their coverage on 1 April 1998.

6.5 In Scotland, assault is a common law offence. In order to distinguish between serious and minor assaults (termed petty assault in the classification) police forces use a common definition of what is a serious assault.

6.6 Attempts to commit an offence are included in the statistics, in general in the same group as the substantive offence.

Reporting practice

6.7 These statistics do not of course reveal the incidence of all crime committed. Not all incidents are reported to the police. The Scottish Crime Survey, a survey of crime victims, suggested that in Scotland victims reported 55 per cent of incidents to the police in 1999, up from 53 per cent in 1981 and 50 per cent in 1995. The two reasons most commonly given by victims for not reporting to the police were that the incident was considered by them to be too trivial or that the police could not have taken any action in any case.

6.8 Many offences, for example, speeding or possession of drugs, have no victim other than perhaps the perpetrator and are discovered and recorded as a result of police activity rather than by being reported to the police by the public. Hence the strength and deployment of the police forces mainly determine the numbers of such offences recorded.

6.9 Variations in police recording practice can also occur between areas over time. It is known, for example, that the introduction of computerised crime logging systems has resulted in improved recording of minor incidents in Scotland since 1975, and as such systems come to be more widely used and improved such effects will continue to occur.

Revision to recorded crime series: offending while on bail

6.10 Section 2 of the Criminal Justice (Scotland) Act 1995, which came into effect on 31 March 1996, amended the Bail etc. (Scotland) Act 1980 provisions relating to breach of bail conditions. Consolidation under the Criminal Procedure (Scotland) Act 1995 subsequently took place with the provisions relating to breach of bail conditions contained in section 27 of this Act.

6.11 The revisions made by the Criminal Justice (Scotland) Act 1995 included one change that impacted on the recording of crimes by the police. Under the 1980 Act, breaching the bail condition that no further offences would be committed while on bail was treated as an offence in its own right. The 1995 Act changed this; breaching this condition ceased to be a separate offence. Under the new provisions (which have applied since April 1996), if an accused commits a further offence while on bail then it is taken into account in sentencing for that offence. The court is now required, in determining sentence, to have regard to the fact that the offence was committed while on bail and may impose a more severe sentence than it would otherwise have done for the conviction. The new provisions under the Criminal Justice (Scotland) Act 1995 apply to any bail order made on or after 31 March 1996.

6.12 The recorded crime series was revised to remove all crimes of "offending while on bail" from the historical data (1983-1995) to enable comparisons over time to be made. Full details of the changes can be found in the statistical bulletin "Recording of Offending while on Bail, Scotland", CrJ/1997/1.

Crimes and offences cleared up

6.13 The definition of "cleared up" is noted below. This definition came into force with effect from 1 April 1996.

A crime or offence is regarded as cleared up where there exists a sufficiency of evidence under Scots law, to justify consideration of criminal proceedings notwithstanding that a report is not submitted to the procurator fiscal because either

(i) by standing agreement with the procurator fiscal, the police warn the accused due to the minor nature of the offence, or
(ii) reporting is inappropriate due to the non-age of the accused, death of the accused or other similar circumstances.

For some types of crime or offence the case is cleared up immediately because the offender is "caught in the act", e.g. motoring offences. In Scots law, the confession of an accused person to a crime would not in general be sufficient to allow a prosecution to be taken as corroborative evidence is required. Thus, a case cannot be regarded as "cleared up" on the basis of a confession alone. In some cases there is sufficient evidence but a prosecution cannot be brought, for example, because the accused has left the country. In such cases, the offender is said to have been traced and the crime is regarded as cleared up. The other terms in the definition describe the various actions that must be taken by the police against offenders.

6.14 Certain motor vehicle offences are not always recorded in cases where police forces are unable to clear-up the offence (e.g. speeding offences where the driver is untraceable). Clear-up rates for motor vehicle offences in these circumstances are artificial. Thus, clear-up rates for the motor vehicle group and clear-up rates for Total Offences and Total Crimes and Offences (which include motor vehicle offences) are not included in the bulletin. However, the number of motor vehicle offences cleared up is still included.

6.15 Clear-up rates in excess of 100 per cent can arise where offences recorded in one year are cleared up during the following year.

Classification

6.16 Contraventions of Scottish criminal law are divided for statistical purposes into crimes and offences. The term "crime" is generally used for the more serious criminal acts; the less serious are termed "offences", although the term "offence" may also be used in relation to serious breaches of criminal law. The distinction is made only for working purposes and the "seriousness" of the offence is generally related to the maximum sentence that can be imposed.

6.17 The category of sexual assault was spilt into "rape & attempted rape" and "indecent assault" with effect from 2001, allowing the police Statutory Performance Indicator of serious violent crime to be readily calculated. The Statutory Performance Indicator of serious violent crime includes all "non-sexual crimes of violence" and "rape & attempted rape".

6.18 The detailed classification of crimes and offences used by The Scottish Executive to collect criminal statistics contains about 360 codes. These are grouped in the bulletin as shown on page 26.

6.19 The following symbols are used throughout the tables in this bulletin - Nil * less than 0.5

6.20 Further analyses of recorded crime statistics can be supplied on request. In certain cases a fee is charged. For details of what can be provided please telephone Miss Allison Wood on 0131 244 2225 or e-mail: allison.wood@scotland.gsi.gov.uk

Scottish Crime Survey

6.21 A number of modular reports addressing specific crime-related issues, which are based on the data gathered for the 2000 SCS, are also available. These reports refer to domestic abuse, drug misuse, young people and crime, the experiences of victims of crime, housebreaking, vehicle crime and violent crime.

Further information

• Crime and Criminal Justice Research Findings No. 51 "The 2000 Scottish Crime Survey: First Results"
• The 2000 Scottish Crime Survey: Analysis of the Ethnic Minority Booster Sample
• The 2000 Scottish Crime Survey: Overview Report
• Domestic Abuse: Findings from the 2000 Scottish Crime Survey
• Drug Misuse in Scotland: Findings from the 2000 Scottish Crime Survey
• Housebreaking in Scotland: Findings from the 2000 Scottish Crime Survey
• Impact of Crime on Victims: Findings from the 2000 Scottish Crime Survey
• Vehicle Crime in Scotland: Findings from the 2000 Scottish Crime Survey
• Violence in Scotland: Findings from the 2000 Scottish Crime Survey
• Young People and Crime in Scotland: Findings from the 2000 Scottish Crime Survey

All of the above can be found on the Scottish Executive web site - www.scotland.gov.uk

• For more information about the Scottish Crime Survey, please contact Kate Skellington Orr Tel: 0131 244 4046 or e-mail: kate.skellingtonorr@scotland.gsi.gov.uk

CLASSIFICATION OF CRIMES AND OFFENCES