FOI Acid Attacks (0227-2022/23)

Request

I would like to request statistics that reveal the number of corrosive fluid offences or acid attacks recorded in the North Yorkshire area in 2021.

1. I would like to request the number of offences that were categorised as an acid attack or corrosive fluid offence between 1st January 2021 and 31st December 2021 inclusive, broken down by month where possible;
 
2.The percentage and or number of said offences mentioned in 1 that were recorded as Violent Offences within the category ‘Violence Against the Person’ also broken down by month;
 
3. Where available the percentage and or number of said offences mentioned in 1 that were flagged as Hate Crimes also broken down by month;
 
4. The ethnicity, age and gender of victims of the said Violent Offences mentioned in 2 broken down by month;
 
5. The ethnicity, age and gender of suspects in the said Violent Offences mentioned in 2 broken down by month;
 
6. The outcomes of the said Violent Offences mentioned in 2 broken down by month;
 
7. Of the said positive outcomes mentioned in 6 the ethnicity, age and gender of suspects broken down by month.

Response

Extent and Result of Searches to Locate Information

To locate the information relevant to your request searches were conducted within North Yorkshire Police. 

I can confirm that the information you have requested is held by North Yorkshire Police. 

Decision

I have today decided to disclose some of the located information to you

I am excepting the month by month breakdown of the information pursuant to section 40(2) – Personal Information. This is to refrain from particular incidents becoming identifiable and consequently the personal details of any persons involved being disclosed.

Please note North Yorkshire Police do not record percentages.

1. The number of offences categorised as acid attacks or corrosive fluid attacks from 1 January 2021 to 31 December 2021 is 8.
2. Of the 8 offences above, all are categorised as ‘Violence against the person’.
3. Of the 8 offences above, none were classified as hate crimes.
4. As a result of the 8 crimes outlined in question 1, there were a total of 8 victims The demographic data is outlined below. I have disassociated the tables pursuant to section 40(2) – Personal Information. This is to refrain from particular incidents becoming identifiable and consequently the personal details of any persons involved being disclosed.

Total number of victims for crimes in Q1 broken down by gender
Gender	Number of Victims
Female	3
Male	5
Total	8

 

Total number of victims for crime in Q1 broken down by ethnicity
Ethnicity	Number of Victims
W1. White British	3
Not Recorded	5
Total	8

 

Total number of victims for crime in Q1 broken down by age
Age	Number of Victims
Under 18	0
18 - 25	1
26 – 35	2
36 – 45	1
46 – 55	2
56 +	1
Not Recorded	1
Total	8

5. The table below shows the total number of the crime outcomes for the crimes identified in answer to question 1.

Crime outcomes for the crimes identified in Q1
Outcome	Number
14-Evidential difficulties victim based – suspect not identified	2
15-Evidential difficulties prevent further action; victim supports police action	1
16-Evidential difficulties prevent further action; victim does not support police action	2
18-Investigation complete - no suspect identified	1
Still Under Investigation	2
Total	8

Exemption Explanation

Section 17 of the Act requires North Yorkshire Police, when refusing to provide such information (because the information is exempt) to provide you the applicant with a notice which: (a) states that fact, (b) specifies the exemption in question and (c) states (if that would not otherwise be apparent) why the exemption applies.

Section 40(2) – Personal Information

Section 40(2) is an absolute class based exemption, which does not require a public interest test, but requires the balancing of the legitimate interests of the public against the interests of the individual under the first Data Protection Principle; in that processing of personal data must be lawful and fair (DPA 2018 35(1), EUGDPR Article 5(1)).

Where an individual can be identified by such data, releasing it would clearly breach the first data protection principle of being ‘fair’ to the data subject.

This exemption applies because the right given under the FOI Act to request official information held by public authorities does not apply to the personal data of third parties where disclosure of that information would not be fair to the individual, and where there is no legitimate public interest in disclosure.

In all the circumstances of the case it has been determined that the duty to the individual under the Data Protection Act 2018 & EU General Data Protection Regulations, and the public interest in maintaining the exemption from disclosure of personal information held by the force in such instances, outweighs the public interest in disclosure. In this instance, personal information can only be disclosed to the individual concerned.

Releasing personal details to a person other than the data subject would not only breach the data subject’s Data Protection rights it may also breach the obligations placed on an authority under the European Convention on Human Rights.

Pursuant to Section 17(1) of the Act this letter acts as a Refusal Notice in response to part of your request.

Please note that systems used for recording information are not generic, nor are the procedures used locally in capturing the data.  It should be noted therefore that this force’s response to your questions should not be used for comparison purposes with any other responses you may receive.