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2. Main Points
- Trends in the figures for firearms offences have been affected by the introduction of the Scottish Crime Recording Standard ( SCRS) which, as anticipated, has increased the numbers of minor crimes recorded by the police, such as minor crimes of vandalism and petty assault. It was not anticipated that the SCRS would have much impact on the figures for the more serious crimes such as serious assault or robbery, and this is the case.
- In 2004/05 the Scottish police recorded 1,165 offences in which a firearm was alleged to have been used, an increase of 20 per cent from the total of 974 recorded in 2003/04, but still 42 per cent lower than the peak 1991/92 figure of 1,998. The increase between 2003/04 and 2004/05 is more than accounted for by increases in crimes in the vandalism group (including reckless conduct with firearms) and in petty assault; these increases can be ascribed to the introduction of the SCRS.
- The use of firearms in criminal activity constituted only a small proportion of all offences recorded by the police in 2004/05; 6 per cent of recorded homicides (8 offences), 2 per cent of recorded attempted murders (20 offences), and 2 per cent of recorded robberies (85 offences). Less than one per cent of recorded serious assaults (48 offences), and less than half a per cent of recorded petty assaults (229 offences) and vandalism offences (407 offences) involved the alleged use of a firearm.
- The number of offences involving the alleged use of a shotgun nearly doubled, increasing from a ten year low of 18 in 2003/04 to 34 in 2004/05. This is, however, 69 per cent lower than the level in 1995/96.
- The number of offences involving the alleged use of a pistol/revolver was up 16 per cent from a ten year low of 25 in 2003/04 to 29 in 2004/05.
- Airweapons accounted for 43 per cent of offences (497) involving firearms in 2004-05, compared to 45 per cent (441) in 2003-04, while unidentified weapons accounted for 36 per cent of offences (420), compared to 38 per cent in 2003-04 (366).
- The number of offences in which a firearm was fired and killed or caused injury to a person rose 34 per cent from a 10 year low of 242 in 2003/04 to 325 in 2004/05. However, the injuries caused must have been relatively minor because the number of serious assaults involving a firearm decreased. The increase in the number of offences causing injury reflect an increase in the number of petty assaults, which reflects the introduction of the SCRS.
- In 2004/05, 39 per cent of all offences in which a firearm was alleged to have been used were cleared up, a slight decrease compared with the 41 per cent cleared up in 2003/04 - this decrease is also an anticipated effect of the introduction of the SCRS.
- The Strathclyde police force area, which contains 43 per cent of the Scottish population, accounted for 46 per cent of all offences in which a firearm was alleged to have been used in 2004/05. More specifically, 7 of the 8 homicides, 80 per cent of attempted murders, 92 per cent of serious assaults, 79 per cent of recorded robberies, 62 per cent of reckless conduct with firearms offences, 57 per cent of Firearms Act 1968 offences and 51 per cent of petty assaults, but only 22 per cent of vandalism offences in which a firearm was alleged to have been used took place in Strathclyde.
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