Police 'appeared to ignore rules' in strip searches on teens
- Published
Of the 27 searches carried out last year, 23 were carried out on boys (stock image)
Police in Northern Ireland "appeared to ignore the rules" in the vast majority of strip searches conducted on young people in 2022, a review has concluded.
It was carried out by the Policing Board's human rights advisor who studied information on all 27 searches.
Its report said it was difficult to assess if any of the searches were lawful due to an absence of records.
The Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) said its procedure had improved but "there is still work to do".
The report was drawn up after concerns were raised by the Children's Law Centre and the human rights charity Amnesty International.
A strip search involves the removal of anything more than an outer layer of clothing, including socks and shoes.
It must be conducted by an officer of the same sex.
Items found in only two searches
The report examined two main issues - the evidential basis for a search and a classification as urgent, which meant no appropriate adult, such as a parent, was required to be present.
It stated strip searching of under-18s is a "rare occurrence".
Of the 27 searches carried out in 2022, 23 were on boys and most were aged 16 or 17.
Alan Todd of the PSNI says the force acknowledges that it has to improve its search procedure
The age of the youngest person searched was 14.
The report stated that prohibited items, namely drugs and a weapon, were found on only two occasions.
That called into question "the nature of the intelligence or evidential basis for the strip searches".
It added: "The human rights advisor found both the justification for the strip search and any justification for the failure to ensure that an appropriate adult was present were inadequately recorded."
For those reasons it questioned whether any of the searches were lawful.
Appropriate adults were only present in six of the 27 searches.
The report went on: "It is of the greatest concern that in the vast majority of cases, the PSNI appeared to ignore the rules and no-one was present to support the young person during this very invasive and humiliating use of power by officers."
'Still work to do'
Since the start of the year, the PSNI has put a new system in place, including more detailed recording of the basis for searches.
There have been 11 searches since then and "many more" of the juveniles strip searched had an adult present.
However the report noted that "only one" of those strip searches resulted in any suspected or dangerous item being found.
"It is particularly concerning that the strip searches that have happened since January 2023 are still problematic."
The report made 10 recommendations, including a new reasonable suspicion test, additional officer training and better record keeping.
Assistant Chief Constable Alan Todd said the PSNI would review its internal guidance on the basis of the recommendations.
"As the report sets out, strip searching is not a power we use routinely and the decision to conduct a search is never taken lightly," he said.
"There are however occasions when our staff believe an individual has concealed an item that could potentially cause themselves serious harm.
"While there has been improvement in the process, we recognise there is still work to do."
- Published12 January 2023
