Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service

LORD ADVOCATE ANNOUNCES SPECIALIST DEATHS UNIT

The Lord Advocate, the Right Honourable Elish Angiolini QC, today announced that she will be establishing a new specialist unit to lead the investigation of complex sudden and unexplained deaths.

Procurators Fiscal are responsible for investigating over 13,000 sudden and unexplained deaths in Scotland each year. Most deaths are straightforward to investigate, but some require detailed and lengthy investigation, sometimes involving complex medical issues.

The Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service is committed to delivering a faster and better service to the community and is therefore creating a new specialist unit which will conduct certain investigations and inquiries while providing access to expertise and specialist advice for Procurators Fiscal investigating the most complex of deaths. The new Unit will build on work to establish specialist teams in areas around Scotland to lead the investigation of deaths.

Announcing the proposed unit, Mrs Angiolini said:

"The investigation of sudden and unexplained deaths is an important responsibility for Procurators Fiscal across the country. With the proposal that Procurators Fiscal become involved in new areas, such as the investigation of Scottish military deaths abroad, and the increasing pace of scientific and medical developments, there is a need for Procurators Fiscal to have access to highly trained specialists and investigators who will bring their expertise to bear from the earliest stage of an investigation.

"By building a team of highly trained specialists under the direction of Crown Counsel, we will be able to investigate the most complex of deaths more quickly and effectively. This, in turn, will provide reassurance to the nearest relatives and the public that the circumstances of a death have been fully and timeously investigated."

The announcement of the proposed new unit is a further example of the recognition of the importance of specialisation in dealing with specific complex areas of work to ensure that COPFS can provide the best possible service to the communities of Scotland.Notes to editors:

Notes to editors:

• The Procurator Fiscal is responsible for the investigation of all sudden, suspicious, unexplained and accidental deaths in Scotland.
• The Coroners and Justice Bill currently going through the Westminster Parliament will, if enacted, provide for the Procurator Fiscal to take on responsibility for the investigation of military deaths abroad, where the deceased has a connection to Scotland. This new unit recognises the need to plan for this development.
• The new unit in COPFS will also be responsible for investigating deaths involving complex medical or other issues.
• The unit will build on an increasingly specialist approach to the investigation and prosecution of crime. Recent developments include the launch of a specialist Health and Safety Division, which will continue to investigate industrial deaths, and the National Sexual Crimes Unit, which prosecutes the most serious sexual offences. . Further areas where COPFS has specialist prosecutors include: appeals; serious and organised crime; and wildlife and environmental offences.
• It is anticipated that the new unit will be operational in early 2010.

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