Cymraeg isod
The Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) has requested police forces in England & Wales refer all Taser discharges on children under 18 where a complaint or conduct matter has arisen.
The move aims to increase national scrutiny on the discharge of Taser by police on children which is an area of concern for a wide range of stakeholders.
At present forces must refer incidents of Taser use on children to the IOPC when certain criteria are met. This includes any uses that result in death or serious injury.
Supported by the National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC), we have written to all forces encouraging them to make relevant referrals from 1 May 2022. At the end of a six-month period, we will review the data and decide whether Taser discharges on children should be subject to mandatory referral to the IOPC. Such a measure would require a change to legislation.
Our decision comes after a review of our cases involving Taser and the responses we received to our recommendations have now been published. The review looked at 101 independent IOPC investigations, existing data and research and considered the views of a range of community groups and stakeholders.
IOPC Director General Michael Lockwood said: “Following our review and recommendations, we are now requesting that forces refer all Taser discharges involving children to us where there is a complaint or conduct matter. We want to establish better knowledge of the circumstances of each incident, and why the discharge was felt necessary by a police officer. We are pleased the NPCC is working with us on an area of significant public interest and concern.
“We are grateful for the response to our review. We recognise more work needs to be done to ensure all communities and stakeholders are confident in the police use of Taser. It is encouraging that there is a continued focus on the issues we have identified, including changes to police officer training being brought in by the College of Policing. We understand the NPCC, with the College, are reinforcing training to cover issues such as disproportionality, Tasering at height, when running, and use in front of a child, along with greater clarity that Taser should not be used for compliance only.
“We recognise Taser is a legitimate tool for police officers and they continue to be made available to more officers than ever before. There remains a difference of opinion between community expectations about when a Taser should be used, and the situations when Taser can be used legitimately under current national guidance. Use of Taser must be reasonable and proportionate to the threat officers are facing and Taser deployment must not act as the default tactic when others are available. Police forces must be able to justify to the public what circumstances led to them deploying a Taser as we look to ensure greater transparency between them and the communities they serve.”
We have also agreed to share data concerning all Taser incidents which result in death and serious injury, with the Scientific Advisory Committee on the Medical Implications of Less Lethal Weapons (SACMILL). This will help expand the pool of evidence that we, and other bodies, can use to identify any medical implications of Taser use thus helping to improve public and officer safety. This collaborative work is imperative in allowing us to improve the scrutiny around Taser deployments and police learning.
Home Office data shows that in 2020/21 there were 2,591 times where police used Taser involving those perceived to be under 18, and 123 incidents where Taser was discharged.
Our Taser review, issued in August last year, made 17 recommendations to organisations including the College of Policing, the NPCC, the Association of Police and Crime Commissioners, and the Home Office. These were set out within the following themes:
- Guidance and training – Improving existing national guidance and training for officers, with a particular focus on vulnerable people and children, racial bias and disproportionality, and communication, and de-escalation skills.
- Scrutiny and monitoring of Taser use – Providing greater scrutiny of Taser use at a local and national level, to identify and address any learning needs for forces and to inform stakeholders and community groups of actions and decisions taken.
- Community engagement and input – Progressing and conducting further research to better understand race discrimination, disproportionality, the impact of racial bias and the risks of Taser use, particularly in relation to repeated and prolonged Taser discharges, and the psychological risks of Taser use on children.
Mae’r IOPC yn galw ar heddluoedd i atgyfeirio achosion o ddefnyddio Taser ar blant ar ôl adolygiad
Mae Swyddfa Annibynnol Ymddygiad yr Heddlu (IOPC) wedi gofyn i heddluoedd yn Lloegr ac yng Nghymru i atgyfeirio pob achos o ddefnyddio Taser ar gyfer plant dan 18 oed lle mae cwyn neu fater ymddygiad wedi codi.
Nod y cam hwn yw i gynyddu craffu cenedlaethol ar ddefnyddio Taser gan yr heddlu ar blant sy'n faes sydd yn peri pryder i ystod eang o randdeiliaid.
Ar hyn o bryd mae'n rhaid i heddluoedd atgyfeirio achosion o ddefnyddio Taser ar blant i'r IOPC pan fodlonir meini prawf penodol. Mae hyn yn cynnwys unrhyw ddefnydd sy'n arwain at farwolaeth neu anaf difrifol.
Gyda chefnogaeth Cyngor Cenedlaethol Prif Swyddogion yr Heddlu (NPCC), rydym wedi ysgrifennu at bob heddlu yn eu hannog i wneud atgyfeiriadau perthnasol o 1 Mai 2022. Ar ddiwedd cyfnod o chwe mis, byddwn yn adolygu’r data ac yn penderfynu a ddylai defnyddio Taser ar blant fod yn destun atgyfeiriad gorfodol i’r IOPC. Byddai mesur o'r fath yn gofyn am newid i ddeddfwriaeth.
Mae ein penderfyniad yn dod ar ôl adolygiad o’n hachosion yn ymwneud â Taser ac mae’r ymatebion a gawsom i’n hargymhellion bellach wedi cael eu cyhoeddi. Edrychodd yr adolygiad ar 101 o ymchwiliadau annibynnol yr IOPC, data presennol ac ymchwil ac ystyriodd farn amrywiaeth o grwpiau cymunedol a rhanddeiliaid.
Dywedodd Cyfarwyddwr Cyffredinol yr IOPC, Michael Lockwood: “Yn dilyn ein hadolygiad a’n hargymhellion, rydym nawr yn gofyn i heddluoedd atgyfeirio pob achos o ddefnyddio Taser sy’n ymwneud â phlant atom ni ble mae cwyn neu fater ymddygiad. Rydym am gael gwell gwybodaeth am amgylchiadau pob digwyddiad, a pham y teimlai swyddog heddlu fod angen ei ddefnyddio. Rydym yn falch bod yr NPCC yn gweithio gyda ni ar faes o ddiddordeb a phryder cyhoeddus sylweddol.
“Rydym yn ddiolchgar am yr ymateb i’n hadolygiad. Rydym yn cydnabod bod angen gwneud mwy o waith er mwyn sicrhau bod pob cymuned a rhanddeiliad yn hyderus yn nefnydd yr heddlu o Taser. Mae'n galonogol fod ffocws parhaus ar y materion yr ydym wedi'u nodi, gan gynnwys newidiadau i hyfforddiant swyddogion heddlu a gyflwynir gan y Coleg Plismona. Rydym yn deall bod yr NPCC, gyda'r Coleg, yn atgyfnerthu hyfforddiant er mwyn ymdrin â materion fel anghymesuredd, defnyddio Taser ar uchder, wrth redeg, a defnydd o flaen plentyn, ynghyd â mwy o eglurder na ddylid defnyddio Taser ar gyfer cydymffurfio yn unig.
“Rydym yn cydnabod bod Taser yn arf cyfreithlon i swyddogion heddlu ac maent yn parhau i fod ar gael i fwy o swyddogion nag erioed o’r blaen. Mae gwahaniaeth barn yn parhau rhwng disgwyliadau’r gymuned ynghylch pryd y dylid ddefnyddio Taser, a’r sefyllfaoedd ble gellir ddefnyddio Taser yn gyfreithlon o dan y canllawiau cenedlaethol cyfredol. Mae'n rhaid i'r defnydd o Taser fod yn rhesymol ac yn gymesur â'r bygythiad y mae swyddogion yn wynebu, ac ni ddylai defnyddio Taser weithredu fel y dacteg ddiofyn pan fydd rhai eraill ar gael. Mae'n rhaid i heddluoedd allu cyfiawnhau i’r cyhoedd pa amgylchiadau a arweiniodd atynt yn defnyddio Taser wrth i ni geisio sicrhau mwy o dryloywder rhyngddynt a’r cymunedau y maent yn eu gwasanaethu.”
Rydym hefyd wedi cytuno i rannu data am yr holl ddigwyddiadau Taser sy'n arwain at anaf difrifol, â'r Pwyllgor Cynghori Gwyddonol ar Oblygiadau Meddygol Arfau Llai Angheuol (SACMILL). Bydd hyn yn helpu i ehangu’r gronfa dystiolaeth y gallwn ni, a chyrff eraill, ei defnyddio er mwyn nodi unrhyw oblygiadau meddygol o ddefnydd Taser gan helpu i wella diogelwch y cyhoedd a swyddogion. Mae'r gwaith cydweithredol hwn yn hanfodol er mwyn ein galluogi i wella'r craffu ynghylch defnyddio Taser a dysgu'r heddlu.
Mae data’r Swyddfa Gartref yn dangos yn 2020/21 bod 2,591 o weithiau lle ddefnyddiodd yr heddlu Taser yn ymwneud â’r rhai y canfyddir eu bod o dan 18 oed, a 123 o achosion lle defnyddion nhw Taser yn llawn.
Gwnaeth ein hadolygiad Taser, a gyhoeddwyd ym mis Awst y llynedd, 17 o argymhellion i sefydliadau gan gynnwys y Coleg Plismona, yr NPCC, Cymdeithas Comisiynwyr yr Heddlu a Throsedd, a’r Swyddfa Gartref. Gosodwyd y rhain o fewn y themâu canlynol:
Canllawiau a hyfforddiant – Gwella’r canllawiau a’r hyfforddiant cenedlaethol presennol i swyddogion, gan ganolbwyntio’n benodol ar bobl a phlant sy’n agored i niwed, rhagfarn hiliol ac anghymesuredd, a sgiliau cyfathrebu, a sgiliau dad-ddwysáu sefyllfa.
Craffu a monitro defnydd Taser – Darparu mwy o graffu ar ddefnydd Taser ar lefel leol a chenedlaethol, er mwyn nodi a mynd i’r afael ag unrhyw anghenion dysgu ar gyfer heddluoedd ac i hysbysu rhanddeiliaid a grwpiau cymunedol o gamau gweithredu a'r penderfyniadau a gymerwyd.
Ymgysylltu a mewnbwn cymunedol – Datblygu a chynnal rhagor o ymchwil er mwyn deall gwahaniaethu ar sail hil, anghymesuredd, effaith rhagfarn hiliol a risgiau defnydd Taser yn well, yn enwedig mewn perthynas â rhyddhau Taser dro ar ôl tro ac am gyfnod hir, a risgiau seicolegol o ddefnydd Taser ar blant.