Lawyers are preparing a legal challenge over controversial national consent forms that ask victims of crime, including rape and sexual assault victims, to hand over their phones and digital devices to police or risk a prosecution not being brought.
The forms state that, while crime victims can refuse consent and can explain why they don’t want to give consent, ‘it may not be possible for the investigation or prosecution to continue’ if they refuse.
Lawyers and groups representing victims believe the consent forms policy is unnecessarily intrusive and will deter victims from coming forward.
The Centre for Women’s Justice (CWJ) is acting for two victims of rape affected by the type of consent form now rolled out nationally by the National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC). The complainants’ cases were dropped after they refused consent for disclosure of data on their mobile phones. The judicial review will be brought against the NPCC rather than the individual police forces concerned.
Harriet Wistrich, CWJ director, said: ‘Many rape complainants have raised this issue―the practice has been ongoing but not consistent across police forces―the change announced is a standardisation of practice.
‘We consider it may breach data protection principles, is an excessive and disproportionate invasion of privacy and is discriminatory as it will primarily impact women.’
Civil liberties group Big Brother Watch is likely to join the case as a co-complainant.
Responding to an urgent question in the House of Commons this week, policing minister Nick Hurd MP said the form, introduced this week, will ensure ‘consistency and clarity’.
A statement from the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) said: ‘Mobile phone data, or social media activity, will only be considered by the police when relevant to an individual case.
‘However, for an investigation to proceed and be fair for both complainant and suspect, all reasonable lines of enquiry must be pursued. Mobile devices will not be needed in every case―but when they are, there is explicit guidance that only material relevant to a particular offence may be pursued, to minimise unnecessary intrusion.’
The CPS reiterated that ‘strong safeguards are in place to prevent complainants being cross-examined on irrelevant sexual history’.
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