Involving the police can be frightening, but sometimes it is needed to prevent serious harm, injury, and homicide. Here's what you might expect if you call the police.
Risk Assessment
If the police believe you to be a victim of domestic abuse, they will conduct a risk assessment. Frontline officers mostly use the Domestic Abuse Risk Assessment (DARA), which is relatively new and has been intended to replace the original Domestic Abuse, Stalking, Harassment, and Honour-based Violence Risk Assessment (DASH).
The risk assessment will ask you personal questions that seek to identify and understand your risk of homicide, serious harm, and coercive control. These risk assessments are incredibly important and give professionals insight into your situation. These risk assessments can be carried out by a number of professionals.
Has There Been a Crime?
You may or may not be aware that there is currently no specific 'domestic abuse crime' aside from coercive control (which is incredibly difficult to prove). Unfortunately, this isn't an automatic crime; however, some common convictions seen against perpetrators are as follows:
Assault
Harassment
ABH/GBH (violent offenses more serious than assault)
Sexual crimes such as rape/sexual assault
Malicious communications
Breaches of bail conditions/protection orders (usually classed as harassment)
Stalking
Coercive control
If the police believe one or more of these crimes have been committed, they will ask if you would like to pursue action against the AP.
What Happens If I Want Action Taken?
The police will ask you to complete a statement and provide them with any evidence you have of physical injuries or behavior.
What Happens If I Don't Want Any Action Taken?
You can ask the police to simply log your complaint. If you do not want to pursue action, you will not provide a statement. Please note, in some cases of extreme risk, the police can pursue action without a victim.
What Happens After I Make a Statement?
If you make a statement, you will be legally required to attend court if the AP is arrested and charged. While you can formally withdraw your statement at any time, this does not mean the process stops, and you may be summoned to court by a judge. Failure to do this can result in your arrest.
What Else Might Happen?
If you have children under the age of 18, the police will take their details. Alerts will be issued to their place of education and the local authority. Children's services are notified, and they will make contact with you to complete further safeguarding and offer you support. On some occasions, this may lead to them being involved with your family if they believe the children to be unsafe.
The police may also offer to refer you to support services. If you are high risk on the DARA/DASH, you will be automatically referred to a multi-agency meeting (MARAC) where your case will be discussed amongst professionals. This is to share information to keep you, and your children if any, safe. High risk also means an automatic referral to an Independent Domestic Violence Advisor (IDVA) for support.
If you are not high risk, the police may offer to refer you to your local domestic abuse support or charity. This may include a Domestic Abuse Caseworker/Advocate/Practitioner.
They can also refer you to other organizations for further information on support, home security, legal advice, and protection orders.
If the police believe you are in immediate danger, they may request an immediate protection order such as an SPO/DVPN. They do not need your consent to do this.
See Part 2 for more information on what happens after an arrest.