PROSECUTION
CASE REVIEW
OUTCOMES
40% of suspects reported
to prosecutions department
resulted in prosecution
23% of suspects
reported to prosecutions
department resulted in
non-statutory cautions
37% of suspects reported to
prosecutions department resulted
in no caution or no proceedings
Headline Prosecution Statistics 2014
All figures relate to England and Wales
2014 2013 2012
Defendants convicted (juvenile offenders) 1,029 (10) 1,371 (17) 1,552 (28)
Prosecution success rate at court hearings 1
98.9% 97.9% 97.9%
Prosecution success rate 2
90.9% 88.5% 92.5%
Defendants with all offences dismissed after trial 11 29 33
Prison sentences imposed on individuals 3
78 88 86
Suspended prison sentences imposed on individuals 3
211 220 178
Disqualification orders imposed on individuals under the
Animal Welfare Act 2006 4 891 1,161 1,265
Convictions secured in the magistrates' court 2,419 3,961 4,168
1. Total defendants convicted as a percentage of defendants whose cases were concluded in court
excluding defendants with proceedings wholly discontinued or withdrawn by the RSPCA.
2. Total defendants convicted as a percentage of all defendants.
3. One offender may have more than one sentence imposed.
4. A disqualification order can be imposed as a penalty in its own right, or it can be additional
to any other penalty imposed.
The facts and figuresThe prosecution of offences fulfils the RSPCA's charitable objectives
of preventing and suppressing cruelty to animals by all lawful means.
The case studies in this report highlight the necessity for the RSPCA to
continue to act, for the public benefit, to protect animals.
The headline statistics below reveal that there are still far too many
cases involving cruelty to animals being detected and still far too
many individual defendants being convicted of offences. While there
is a reduction in the number of convictions secured in 2014 compared
to the preceding year, it is impossible to suggest that this could be
the start of a general downward trend; the expectation is that the
RSPCA's prosecution work is unlikely to decline significantly in the
forthcoming period.
Comprehensive prosecution statistics relating to England and Wales can
be found on pages 46-48 of this report. Separate statistics for Wales
alone are on page 50.
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