Justice Analytical Services (JAS) Safer Communities and Justice Statistics Monthly Data Report January 2023 edition

Topic Page

Domestic Abuse (Scotland) Act 2018 – Interim Reporting Requirement

In January we published information on the progress and outcome of domestic abuse cases in court and the experiences of victims and witnesses, since the introduction of the Domestic Abuse (Scotland) Act 2018 (the 'Act').

A central aim of the Act is to enable the prosecution of various types of abuse, including emotional and psychological abuse, which takes place over a period of time, under a new domestic abuse offence. Early indications show an increase in the use of the legislation over the two years for which statistical data is available:

• an increase in the number of people convicted of the new offence (from 212 in 2019-20 to 383 in 2020-21)
• an increase in the use of the new statutory sentencing aggravation intended to reflect the harm caused to children by domestic abuse since the Act came into force, from 39 in 2019-20 to 90 in 2020-21.

The research with victims and witnesses found that the new law better reflects how adult victims experience domestic abuse: participants reported a range of psychological, physical and, for some, sexual harm over time. However, there was limited awareness of what constitutes criminal behaviour under the Act.

Going to court was experienced as difficult and distressing for many of the victims and witnesses, including children and young people, who participated in the research.

Overall, the evidence on victim and witness experiences of the criminal justice system, suggests the continued existence and/or the exacerbation (due to the COVID-19 pandemic) of known issues relating to the experiences of vulnerable witnesses at court; rather than new issues specific to or resulting from the Act. These included long delays; lack of communication, involvement or understanding of procedures; and the importance of kind and respectful treatment and availability of specialist support.

A number of areas for improvement were identified in the research which included improved knowledge, communication and information sharing; increased use of remote and/or earlier pre-recorded evidence; quicker and more efficient processes; and expanding support and ensuring safety for victims at all stages of the justice process.

It is important to note that the research findings are drawn from three small-scale research studies (69 research participants in total) and cannot therefore be generalised to all domestic abuse victims and witnesses. Small samples are fairly typical of research studies on domestic abuse due to their highly sensitive nature. Moreover, the impact of the pandemic makes it difficult to draw firm conclusions. However, the findings are consistent with other recent research on experiences of victims in the justice system.