Police contact with woman before being murdered by ex-partner – West Yorkshire Police, August 2019
Recommendation date: 26 August 2021
Response due: 21 October 2021
Published: 9 April 2025
On 16 August 2019, a woman made a telephone complaint to Derbyshire Constabulary in relation to an allegation that her ex-partner had threatened a male friend of hers. On 19 August, her ex-partner attended a West Yorkshire Police (WYP) station to admit that he had threatened the woman’s friend. The ex-partner was already known to the police as having a history of mental health and domestic violence issues. On 19 August, the woman attended a WYP station. She made a complaint in relation to allegations that her ex-partner had also made threats to her, her friends and family, if she ever broke up with him. A witness statement and Domestic Abuse, Stalking and Honour Based Violence (DASH) risk assessment form was completed with her. Between 21 August and 12 September, her ex-partner made several complaints to WYP regarding the woman and other persons. The woman made a further visit to …
Recommendations (9)
Recommendation 1
Accepted
Recommendation
The IOPC recommends that West Yorkshire Police reminds all officers and police staff that intelligence gained from incident reports should be uploaded to individual Niche intelligence profiles at the earliest opportunity. An IOPC investigation identified that significant intelligence relating to … Read more
Force Response
Accepted– this can be reiterated and policy checked, but should be taking place already, not just within DA but all crime types. Accepted – SCGU have amended the Force’s DA policy and this need will continue to be reiterated on … Read more
Recommendation 2
Accepted
Recommendation
The IOPC recommends that a system is put in place to track domestic abuse cases that are returned to officers because the minimum standards of investigation were not met. This system should ensure that cases are progressed with appropriate supervision … Read more
Force Response
Accepted with caveat– WYP do not have a system that can easily be used to track cases in the manner suggested in this and recommendations from other IOPC reviews (redacted). Niche does not have this functionality. Given the differing sizes … Read more
Recommendation 3
Accepted
Recommendation
The IOPC recommends that West Yorkshire Police should ensure that all probationary officers that are deployed have appropriate support in place to review and supervise their work. This follows an IOPC Investigation where a probationary WYP officer dealt with a … Read more
Force Response
Accepted– this should be occurring in any event, so would simply be a reiteration of what supervisors should be doing with student officers’ workloads, but especially those involving vulnerability.Accepted – it is considered that this should be occurring in any … Read more
Recommendation 4
Awaiting Response
Recommendation
[Recommendation 4 not taken forward]
Recommendation 5
Accepted
Recommendation
The IOPC recommends that West Yorkshire Police review their domestic abuse policies and training to ensure that officers are clear on their responsibilities and the procedures that should be followed when dealing with domestic abuse incidents. This recommendation follows an … Read more
Force Response
Accepted– although this is part of SCGU’s routine business, but district will be reminded that compliance does sit with them.
Accepted– this will continue to be reiterated as in recommendation 3.
Recommendation 6
Accepted
Recommendation
It is recommended that West Yorkshire Police remind Sergeants that DASH risk assessments and any supporting statements should be reviewed to endorse the risk level attributed to a victim. This recommendation follows an IOPC investigation where a probationary officer failed … Read more
Force Response
Accepted with caveat– this simply needs reiteration – it is and has been routine business. Accepted- DASH is completed at the scene on officer’s handheld devices. Where the response to a question is ‘yes’ or ‘other’ it is mandatory for … Read more
Recommendation 7
Awaiting Response
Recommendation
The IOPC recommends that West Yorkshire Police remind officers that when completing a DASH risk assessment form, if the category ‘other’ is chosen, a full explanation must be provided in the free text field. In addition, routine audits should be … Read more
Recommendation 8
Awaiting Response
Recommendation
[Recommendation 8 not taken forward]
Recommendation 9
Awaiting Response
Recommendation
[Recommendation 9 not taken forward]