Policy
Post-Incident Procedures: A Decade in Review
Insp. James Harding (Ret.) 01/11/2024It Stops Now Foundation#PIP#Firearms#Best Practice
An operational review of Post-Incident Procedures following lethal force, identifying critical failures in immediate officer welfare and legal protection.
Key Findings
- •40% average delay in compiling initial statements under standard PIP protocols.
- •Welfare coordinator role is absent or unstaffed in 65% of surveyed divisions.
- •Independent legal advice is delayed by an average of 18 hours post-incident.
Post-Incident Procedures are designed to protect officers and the public after critical incidents. This decade-long review finds systemic slippage between policy intent and operational reality.
Delays in welfare contact and legal representation leave officers exposed during the most vulnerable hours after an incident. The report sets out a practical minimum standard every force should adopt immediately.
Methodology
A retrospective review of 150 critical incidents over a ten-year span (2014-2024) across 15 police force areas.