One of our regular features on this blog has been to look at the number of illegally killed eagles over a period of time, and to compare that figure with the corresponding number of prosecutions (current stats are 27 dead or ‘missing’ eagles in seven years vs zero prosecutions).
We thought it’d be interesting to take a wider view and calculate the number of confirmed raptor persecution incidents (all species, not just eagles) and compare those with the corresponding number of convictions.
A few caveats first:
1. Persecution figures are only based on data from 2003-2011 inclusive, because we haven’t yet seen the confirmed data from 2012. We could have used persecution data from 1989 but the corresponding conviction data are unavailable pre-2003. We used 2012 conviction data as these relate to crimes that took place as far back as 2009.
2. The persecution data include other birds (e.g. ravens) but not mammals.
3. Only ‘confirmed’ incidents are included in the analysis; we have not included ‘probable’ or ‘possible’ incidents.
4. The number of confirmed incidents refers to the number of individual birds found, as opposed to the actual number of incidents per se. We don’t have access to information that would inform whether an incident involved more than one individual bird so we treated them all as separate incidents. We don’t think this is an unreasonable approach – indeed it’s how prosecutors treat incidents of other crime when they decide on the number of charges to bring, e.g. prosecutors in the case against the alleged Boston bomber will treat each victim as a separate charge against the alleged bomber, the same with the alleged kidnapper and rapist in the recent Cleveland, Ohio case.
So here’s what we found:
Confirmed incidents of poisoning, shooting, trapping, nest destruction 2003-2011 = 450.
Successful prosecutions 2003-2012 = 33.
Number of unsolved persecution crimes 2003-2011 = 417.
The conviction rate for raptor persecution crime in Scotland is a shocking 7.3%.
Raptor Persecution UK 
7.3% is a very poor performance, but then the conviction rate for rape is 4.6%. This is probably not the place to dissect the generall efficiency of the criminal justice system. However, if overall conviction rates are low (which they are) then it is a howling certainty that certain groups of crime that are not afforded the attention necessary (through lack of resources/lack of will or whatever) are bound to have very poor conviction rates.
I believe that with existing resources the situation could be improved. Some police forces are better than others. Therefore, it follows, that the feet draggers can be brought up to speed if there is a determoination to do so.
There is clear evidence that making more use of the SSPCA (and giving them greater powers) is a way forward.
Also, is it completely beyond the wit of man to do something about the endless delays (perhaps I should call it “ducking and diving”) that appears to be endemic in the court system.
The list of room for improvement could go on for much longer, I know.
seen this?
http://www.avaaz.org/en/petition/Stop_illegal_hunting_and_trapping_of_protected_migratory_birds_in_Malta/?fofiNdb&pv=38
I’m surprised it’s as high as 7.3% given the evasiveness of our police force and the obvious lack of willingness from our judicial system and others to prosecute the habitual Raptor persecutors and or their employers.