Police forces urged to stay alert to ‘Covid blaming’ as an excuse or defence by suspects
Coronavirus was “weaponised” by domestic abusers during the pandemic and police forces should remain alert to “Covid blaming” as an excuse or defence by suspects, a study has found.
The Domestic Homicide Project, established by the National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC) and the College of Policing, revealed that domestic homicides in England and Wales had not increased dramatically during the pandemic but still remained at about three a week, with 163 recorded in the 12 months to March. This was similar to the previous year’s figure of 152 and in line with the 15-year average.