back to article Police Scotland to cough 0.001% of annual income for unlawful RIPA spying

Police Scotland has been ordered to pay a Scottish policeman-turned-novelist £10,000 in damages after being found guilty of abusing surveillance powers to hunt down sources who blew the whistle on a bungled murder enquiry. The Investigatory Powers Tribunal published its judgment yesterday. Although five people filed claims …

  1. BebopWeBop
    FAIL

    No prosecutions of course.

    Public bodies being fined by public bodies - no deterrent. Charges need to be brought. And I must say I am surprised (or maybe not) that the Scottish Parliament either do not have the power to compel a witness to appear - or choose not to. Probably the latter given their supine approach and poor control of reorganisation,

    1. Jake Maverick

      Re: No prosecutions of course.

      and not just with this! every time they break into somebody's home, do thousands of criminal damage and then sell their personal info to their mates and get a commission to ACPO they get a mighty fine %....never mind all the murders (just under 1 000 every year according to govt own stats) the rapes and the general violence and thievery...the likes of 60 minute makeover still walking free to!

  2. Hollerithevo

    Refused to appear?

    Isn't a Parliament a court of law? And therefore 'contempt of court' would follow a no-show and that means arrest and jail?

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: Refused to appear?

      Only if the UK government has passed that power to the Scottish parliament - so probably not.

  3. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Sooo - lots of lawbreaking, no consequence, nobody goes to jail. I guess they'll just carry on as before, then.

  4. Yag
    Facepalm

    qui custodiet ipsos custodes?

    To serve and protect (our own crownies). Impressive.

  5. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    In the police's view, merely declaring that Police Scotland had broken the law by infringing the claimants' human rights – namely, breaching the European Convention on Human Rights' guarantees on the right to a private life and to freedom of expression – would amount to “just satisfaction”.

    If I get a speeding ticket I think that's the defence I'm going to use. Makes perfect sense, you break the law and because people know you have broken the law then that's your punishment. I think based on this we should just scrap all prisons as we clearly don't need them.

    Personally I think the 0.001% could also relate to the one time they got caught.

    1. Robert Moore

      > because people know you have broken the law then that's your punishment. I think based on this we should just scrap all prisons as we clearly don't need them.

      Your idea could work really well with a certain group of crims.

      Also, your ideas intrigue me, and I wish to subscribe to your news letter.

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        You.Gov if you're interested.

        It's a nice quaint little part of the internet for like minded people to actually believe their opinions matter. It's like HYS for the BBC without the forced racist overtones that no one believes is actual opinion.

      2. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Also, your ideas intrigue me, and I wish to subscribe to your news letter.

        Failing that, could I send you some surveys? Those f&^%ing things now arrive after any interaction with anything and anyone.

        "You were breathing near our house yesterday, would you care to answer a survey?". Only if I can stick it, printed on particularly rough edged cardboard, where I think it belongs.

        Sorry, had to finish some left over July whinge quota before it expires..

  6. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    So did anything happen with the murder case?

    Did they find out why they ordered that suspect to be ignored? Was he someone powerful, or a relative of someone on the force?

  7. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    We must 'watch the watchmen' but how without whistleblowers

    Proves that unlimited surveillance powers can't be given to government agencies. It only leads to Middle-East / Latin-America / Africa banana-republic-like-witch-hunts against whistleblowers, human rights activists & investigative journalists etc.

  8. genghis_uk

    Surprised?

    Police abusing anti-terror laws to spy on non-terror suspects - well, who'd have though that would happen?

    Nothing to see here... move along... (if you don't move along we will start to look into your affairs, after all if you have nothing to hide...)

    1. Yet Another Anonymous coward Silver badge

      Re: Surprised?

      They were terror suspects by definition - they weren't convicted and were investigated using anti-terrorist laws.

  9. Shades

    If you have nothing to hide...

    "Det Supt Donaldson has since retired from Police Scotland. He refused an order to appear before the Scottish Parliament to answer questions about his involvement in authorising the CCU witch-hunt."

    ...you have nothing to fear, right?

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: If you have nothing to hide...

      You know, this chap strikes me as the perfect person to put under citizen's surveillance, permanently. After all, if it's OK for a random cop to decide it's acceptable to spy on a citizen without any consequences it should be the same for the average citizen - cops have no more rights in law than citizens.

      I'd also welcome a stop to this ability to quickly resign before the sh*t hits the fan. That escape hatch is all too convenient and should be terminated.

  10. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    ""Det Supt Donaldson has since retired..."

    ...with a nice fat pension no doubt.

    So if you rob a bank, can you "retire" before the case comes to court? I thought not.

    1. Yet Another Anonymous coward Silver badge

      Re: ""Det Supt Donaldson has since retired..."

      No, the bank should pay you to go on indefinite bank robber leave on full pay while the case is being investigated.

  11. Matt Bryant Silver badge
    Facepalm

    As expected.

    LOL! The posts in this thread neatly avoid the fact that it was the body put in place by the authorities to monitor the use of surveillance that exposed the case, neatly debunking all the usual blather about "lack of oversight".

  12. Oengus

    Oversight?

    Now, police must at least get a magistrate to rubber-stamp such spying warrants.

    Now all the police have to do is "find" a co-operative magistrate... I really don't think that will be very hard.

    1. Sir Runcible Spoon

      Re: Oversight?

      For the oversight to mean anything it has to be followed up with some kind of action that would deter the offenders from trying it again.

      £10k of someone elses money? Right.

  13. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Nice for some...

    '..IOCCO's final report into the matter did not conclude that Police Scotland had intentionally broken the law but did concede that they might have been “reckless” about obeying it.'

    I'll have to remember that one if I'm ever accused of breaking the law, ignorance is no defence (we are told), but obviously recklessness is..

  14. katrinab Silver badge

    "Now, police must at least get a magistrate to rubber-stamp such spying warrants."

    Scotland doesn't have magistrates, except in Glasgow. It could presumably be approved by a Justice of the Peace or a Sheriff. Glasgow magistrates are slightly more senior than Justices of the Peace. Sheriffs in Scotland are a type of judge, not a police chief as in the US, and much more senior.

    Unless, maybe you mean a Magistrate in Glasgow, a Sheriff elsewhere?

    1. Jake Maverick

      google Holley Gregg / Greig.....what is the point? if you're not prepared to take up arms you have already lost.

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