Victims' code for Scotland

Right to Information

Reporting a crime

If you decide to report a crime to the police, they will provide you with a victim care card. This will acknowledge your complaint in writing and provide you with other useful information.

Further information about how your report will be taken forward can be found in the Standards of Service for Victims and Witnesses. A copy of this document is available from any of the relevant authorities.

The relevant authorities are: Police Scotland, the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service, the Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service, the Scottish Prison Service and the Parole Board for Scotland. Contact details for the relevant authorities are listed under "Who to Contact" at the back of this booklet.

Requesting case-specific information

You have the right to request certain case-specific information from the following authorities, and can make a formal application for this information if this has not been provided to you:

• From Police Scotland - information about a decision not to proceed with a criminal investigation and any reasons for it, and a decision to end a criminal investigation and any reasons for it.
• From the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service - if your case is not prosecuted, you have the right to be told the reasons why and to request a review of this decision.
• From the Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service - the dates of any court hearings, the final decision of a court in a trial or any appeal arising from a trial, and any reasons for it.

Information on the Release of the Offender (Victim Notification Scheme)

If the offender has been sentenced to 18 months or more in prison, you can choose whether or not to register with the Victim Notification Scheme. If you choose to register, and are eligible, contact the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service who will give you a form to complete and an envelope to send it to the Scottish Prison Service.

The scheme allows you to receive information from the Scottish Prison Service about the offender's release, date of death within prison, transfer outwith Scotland, eligibility for temporary release, escape and return to prison.

If the offender has been sentenced to less than 18 months in prison, you can write to the Scottish Prison Service and ask them to inform you when the offender is released, or in the event that the offender escapes. Further information on how to do this is available from the Scottish Prison Service.