Not Protectively Marked
Document Last Updated 25/07/2005 - 09:10:26
Homophobic/Transphobic Incidents - H 2
Policy
Northern Constabulary is committed to ensure the well-being and safety of all sections within the community. No individual will receive less favourable treatment or service on the grounds of his/her sexuality or gender identity.
Standards
It is recognised that people who are gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgendered may be subject to persecution, harassment or abuse by reason of their sexuality and may be particularly vulnerable to repeat or continued victimisation.
A homophobic incident is defined as:
“any occurrence which appears either to the victim or to any other person, including the reporting officers, to be motivated by homophobia, i.e. a hatred or fear of lesbians or gay men.”
A transphobic incident is defined as:
"any occurrence which appears either to the victim or to any other person, including the reporting officers, to be motivated by transphobia, ie. a hatred or fear of transgender individuals.”
Homophobic incidents can include a wide range of situations from personal abuse to physical assault and criminal damage. Homophobic and transphobic motivation may be apparent in verbal comments or assumed through particular circumstances e.g. damage to vehicles in an area frequented by the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community. It would include incidents where heterosexual people are thought to be gay or lesbian and attacked or victimised in some way. It does not, however, include incidents between and involving only lesbians, gay men or transgender people. To enable monitoring, all homophobic and transphobic incidents will be entered under the IMPACT code “HO”.
Lesbians, gay men and transgender people do not seek preferential treatment over any other group in their dealings with the police. Sexual orientation or gender identity should not be an issue when someone is involved with the police, in whatever context. However, attacks and other incidents associated with homophobia and transphobia must be regarded in a different light to other reported incidents as they involve a specific hatred against a minority section of the community.
It is recognised that many homophobic and transphobic incidents are either not reported, or vital information is withheld by the complainer who may not wish the police to know whether he/she is lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender. It is necessary for the police to take positive steps to overcome the concerns of members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community and reassure them that no prejudice exists and they will be treated in an appropriate manner.
Victims may be unable to report incidents due to a number of factors that may include:-
1. a simple desire by victims not to draw further attention for fear of renewed harassment;
2. a lack of confidence in the police and criminal justice system;
3. doubts that information will be treated confidentially and sympathetically;
4. concern that they may be prosecuted for importuning or other offences;
5. a belief that reporting an incident is a pointless exercise which does not directly and immediately benefit the victim.
All staff dealing with homophobic and transphobic incidents must be aware that if they are handled insensitively or unprofessionally this can lead to local disharmony and jeopardise community relationships.
Homophobia and transphobia in adults, and the mishandling of such, may also attract intense media interest and the content of any press releases must be carefully considered and the victim kept informed.
In an effort to gauge the extent of the homophobic and transphobic crimes and harassment, and to increase the confidence of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community, it has been agreed that anonymous complaints will be accepted and logged on the IMPACT system. So long as such an incident remains “anonymous”, it will not be classed a crime but will be coded ”HO”. The benefit of such reporting is that it will help to identify any developing trends and locations, enabling a problem solving approach to be utilised. Similarly, reports will be accepted from Reach Out Highland, a sexual health charity, who have frequent dealings with the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community.
The Force Crime Intelligence Officer will be responsible for extracting this information from IMPACT and entering it into the Force Crime Intelligence Systems. Officers dealing with homophobic/transphobic, or suspected homophobic/transphobic incidents, will arrange for intelligence checks to be carried out. Such intelligence has been given security level 2 - access by personnel with supervisor responsibility.
Guidance
When an incident of a homophobic or transphobic nature is reported, it will be logged on IMPACT under the “HO” classification, which will later be checked by a supervisor prior to the incident being filed.
Where time permits, the supervisor will brief officers prior to their attendance and conduct a de-briefing after the event. The Duty Officer will ensure that liaison with other agencies, such as Housing, Social Services, Victim Support, etc., has been considered in conjunction with the victim’s needs and that adequate steps have been taken to make the victim feel safe. The identity of the victim in cases of homophobic and transphobic incidents will not be disclosed to third parties, including referral to support agencies, without the victim's express permission. Following due consideration of the circumstances of each incident, the Area Crime Prevention/Community Safety Officer should be advised to contact the victim to provide any suitable advice or assistance. The incident will be investigated and the complainer kept informed of progress as per the Force Crime Management Handbook.
Normal procedures in relation to Victim Support will be followed as detailed in the relevant Force Reference Document. It is stressed, however, that the express permission of the victim must be obtained before referral.
Where the complaint is found to be not of a criminal nature, or no person is detected, the complainer will receive a personal visit from the investigating officer.
The circumstances will be carefully and clearly explained to the complainer who will be given any appropriate advice and details of referral or support agencies, as given in Appendix 1.
POLICING THE LESBIAN, GAY, BISEXUAL AND TRANSGENDER COMMUNITIES
An area of potential conflict between the police and the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender communities is the wider aspect of law enforcement relating to homosexuality.
The following guidance has been brought to the attention of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community who do not seek preferential treatment over any other group having dealings with the Police.
The main legislation covering homosexual acts is contained within Section 13 of the Criminal Law (Consolidation) Scotland Act 1995, which is available on the Force Intranet.
The main objectives in this regard are to:-
1. prevent offence being caused to members of the public by being the object of unwelcome approaches or by witnessing indirect or offensive behaviour;
2. maintain public order;
3. help maintain a realistic understanding of the situation.
Where complaints are found to be genuine and justified, observations should be undertaken to assess the extent of the offence being caused to members of the public. The use of observations by plain clothes officers to gauge the extent of the problem and gain information is recommended as an initial response. On the basis of the complaints and the observations, an assessment should be made as to the extent of and the seriousness of the nuisance and an appropriate response, authorised by the Area Commander, made. The response to an established nuisance should be either:
1. increased patrols and supervision by uniformed officers; or
2. in cases of serious nuisance the planned use of observations and detection of offenders.
In all instances there will be strict avoidance of any action which may be construed as acting as Agent Provocateur.
ADVICE FOR OFFICERS DEALING WITH TRANSGENDER PEOPLE
In the United Kingdom, a person is permitted to change his or her personal details to live as a member of the opposite gender to that recorded at birth. Many transgender people also undergo medical treatment, which can include hormone therapy and appropriate surgery. This is only provided following careful assessment by medical professionals and may take some time.
While it is not at present possible for a UK citizen who has undergone “gender reassignment” to alter his or her birth certificate, it is possible to obtain other official documents in his/her new identity. These include a passport, driving licence and national insurance number. The policing of transgender people is a complex issue which requires a sensitive approach. The following guidance has been produced to ensure that:
• Transgender people are afforded the same respect and dignity as any other member of the public;
• The sensitivity and dignity of police officers involved in related procedures, particularly in relation to searching, is maintained.
DEFINITIONS
Transgender - is a term whose exact meaning is often in dispute. The most widely accepted definition is that it includes everything not covered by our culture’s narrow terms ‘woman’ and ‘man’. People who might include themselves in the term include transsexuals (pre, post and no-op), transvestites and crossdressers, persons with ambiguous genitalia, persons who have chosen to perform ambiguous social genders and those who have chosen to perform no gender at all.
The issues addressed herein are how to establish the “preferred” gender of the person with whom the officer is dealing and what sex he/she should be treated as. The principles laid out below primarily relate to transgender people who are in custody or subject to a legal procedure (for example search in the street). Nevertheless, they should also be borne in mind when dealing with transgender people as victims or as witnesses.
PRINCIPLES
These principles are very broad and cannot cater for every possible circumstance. The actions of officers must be shown to be fair and respecting of the persons dignity. It should not be forgotten that in law, the gender of a person is that which was registered at the time of birth, a fact that remains unchanged regardless of any subsequent medical treatment or surgery. However, a rigid adherence to this principle has been found to be too inflexible and has led to unnecessary confrontations. Experience has shown that where a transgender person is treated according to his/her preferred gender, he/she is more likely to be co-operative during the course of his/her dealing with police (for example as a witness to a crime or when being interviewed). The following guidance should be followed:
If the gender of the person is unambiguous, or there is no reason to suspect that the person is not the gender that they appear, they should be dealt with as that gender.
If it is not completely clear as to a person’s gender, he/she should be asked what gender he/she considers him/herself to be and what gender he/she would prefer to be treated as. If the person expresses a preference to be dealt with as a particular gender he/she should be asked to sign the custody record or other document (eg. notebook for a search in the street) to indicate his/her preference.
If a person is unwilling to make such an election, the officer should try and determine the predominant lifestyle of the person. For example, if the person appears to live predominantly as a woman, the person should be treated as such.
If there is still doubt, the officer will have to resort to dealing with the person according to the gender that he/she was born, and should consider using powers under Section 13 and 14 of the Criminal Procedure (Scotland) Act 1995 to determine such.
Transgender persons, once this fact has been established, must always be accommodated in a cell or detention room on their own.
For persons detained for a legal process or in custody (be it in the public arena or at a Police Station) - once the gender that a transgender person is to be treated as has been established, such information regarding the doubt concerning the sexuality must be conveyed to the appropriate officer (male or female) who has been identified to carry out the search of that person, prior to the search commencing. This is important so as to protect the dignity of everyone concerned.
Should an officer express reservations about carrying out any search under the above circumstances, this will be reported to a supervisor who will arrange for the search to be conducted by another officer(s).
