Nine women win compensation from Devon and Cornwall Police over domestic abuse failures

Devon and Cornwall Police has paid compensation to nine women who say the force failed to investigate officers accused of domestic abuse and sexual violence.

Devon and Cornwall Police pays out over failure to investigate officer abuse claims

Nine women have received compensation after Devon and Cornwall Police was accused of failing to investigate serving and former officers for domestic abuse and sexual violence, bbc.co.uk reports.

The women say their reports of alleged rape, assault and coercive control by male officers employed by the force were not taken seriously. The force has apologised and agreed an out-of-court settlement, paying compensation without admitting legal liability.

One victim, referred to as Freya — not her real name — said her former husband, a police officer, pushed her in front of a car when she was five months pregnant. She described years of physical and psychological abuse. On one occasion when he allegedly threatened her with a knife, officers attended but advised him to take a walk and calm down, and did not speak to her.

After filing for divorce, she alleged he raped her. "He kept telling me 'who are they going to believe, me or you? Because I'm an officer'," she said.

Following that, Freya said she spoke to two senior officers. One told her they would look after her husband; another said they could not have her bringing the force into disrepute. She said she felt like she was "up against the mafia" when she reported him.

Some of the women involved in the claim had themselves worked for Devon and Cornwall Police. Phoebe — also not her real name — said she was attacked by her then ex-partner after they had both left the force. When she called police, the attending officer did not believe her account.

"He called me pathetic. He pointed his finger at me and said I was the one who was at fault," she said. She later rang for a crime number but was told no assault had taken place, despite being left "black and blue".

"It still remains a big boys' club and this was the problem — my partner was part of that boys' club so they decided they had to protect him," she said. Another victim described the force using the same phrase, saying it had "protected" the man she claims assaulted her.

All of the women's accounts of their alleged treatment when reporting abuse were put to Devon and Cornwall Police. The force declined to comment further.

According to the Centre for Women's Justice (CWJ), which brought the case against the force, some of the accused officers remain in post — and some have since been promoted.

In February 2024, the CWJ wrote to Devon and Cornwall Police stating its intention to take legal action against the Office of the Chief Constable on behalf of the women, citing the force's "failure to investigate reports of and prevent sexual and domestic abuse".

In March 2026, the nine women met the chief constable and senior force members to discuss their experiences. The chief constable apologised to all of them for the conduct of the force. "I felt the apology was sincere. The chief constable seemed moved and I believed him," one of the women said.

The force said a sum of money had been agreed to bring matters to a conclusion without court proceedings. It added: "We are committed to tackling any further allegations of police perpetrated domestic abuse and continued to invest in measures to protect all in our communities, particularly women and girls, from violence and abuse."

The Devon and Cornwall case followed a police super-complaint submitted in 2020 to the Independent Office for Police Conduct, His Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services, and the College of Policing. The CWJ and the Bureau of Investigative Journalism argued it was harmful to the public interest that forces were mishandling reports of officer-perpetrated abuse.

More than 200 women subsequently came forward with similar accounts, and the CWJ found a high proportion were connected to Devon and Cornwall. It launched its legal claim alleging the force's system for investigating police-perpetrated domestic abuse was so flawed it breached the women's human rights.

Debaleena Dasgupta, solicitor for the CWJ, said the outcome was a strong result but that litigation should not have been necessary. "Reporting domestic abuse is already difficult, and even more so when the perpetrator is a police officer and there is no option but to report them to their own employer. For the women to encounter indifference, delay, and basic investigative failures was unacceptable."

Dasgupta added that the entire system for handling police-perpetrated domestic abuse needed to be overhauled — not just in Devon and Cornwall. The CWJ is calling for an independent central reporting system so that cases are not investigated by colleagues and friends of the accused.

Source: Google News UK — Crime (en)