What are the current laws regarding escalation and do they protect victims?

Speculation could become a specific crime after the Prime Minister promised new legislation to encourage more victims to come forward.

Staff in pubs, bars and clubs will receive specific training on detecting and preventing incidents. new pilot programIt will be made more widely available next year.

An independent increase law was mentioned The King’s Speech earlier this year – but no details were provided. It will only apply to England and Wales, with separate legislation needed for Scotland and Northern Ireland.

On Monday, the government reiterated its promise of a new law, arguing that a separate law would increase reporting and be a stronger deterrent.

How does the increase occur and how widespread is it?

Spiking can be done with alcohol, illegal or prescription drugs. The substances are most often added to people’s drinks, but they can also be put into food, e-cigarettes, or by injecting someone with a needle.

Ketamine, gamma hydroxybutyrate (GHB) and Rohypnol are among the most commonly used substances.

Police in England and Wales have received 6,732 reports of spikes in the year to April 2023 – but as “not all victims report this to police” they say: “We cannot be sure how many spike victims there actually are.”

According to National Police Chiefs’ Council data, the majority of incidents (80%) occur in public places; Almost half of it happens in bars, followed by nightclubs.

Campaign organizations highlight that college and university campuses, as well as music festivals, are increasingly being targeted.

What does the law say?

Spiking crimes currently fall under the scope of more than one law, but they do not have their own legislation.

Most are covered by the Offenses Against Persons Act (1861).

These include “maliciously administering poison in a manner likely to endanger life or cause grievous bodily harm” or “with intent to injure, distress or disturb a person”, which carry maximum sentences of 10 and five years in prison respectively.

If the spike causes permanent injury, the defendant could be charged with inflicting grievous bodily harm, potentially carrying a life sentence.

Because spikes often facilitate sexual crimes, suspects can be charged with “administering substances with the intent to engage in non-consensual sexual activity.” It is an “either way” offense and as such can be resolved by magistrates’ courts, which can result in a fine or imprisonment of up to six months, or by a crown court, which can impose a prison sentence of up to 10 years.

What are the victims’ experiences with the law?

Less than 3% of cases are reported to the police, according to a national survey by Stamp Out Spiking UK.

“The victims we speak to feel let down throughout their journey,” founder and chief executive Dawn Dines tells Sky News.

Ms Dines says there are problems at every stage, from sample collection and police interrogation to the court system.

Spike Aware UK is another charity that supports victims. It was founded by Colin and Mandy Mackie after their 18-year-old son Colin died following a suspicious spike in 2017.

Many victims they interviewed who reported their cases say police responded slowly, it took weeks to gather evidence, the substances left their systems in that time, and the spike was difficult to prove.

According to both campaign groups, sample collection poses the biggest obstacle.

Drugs such as GHB can leave the body in as little as six hours. Although more than 100 types of drugs have been tested, the test kits used by researchers are “never 100% accurate”, Mr and Mrs Mackie say.

“Drugs change a lot; new substances are added to them, so the police find new drugs every week. This causes problems with the test kits,” he told Sky News.

Spike Aware UK also believes hospitals should be given the power to collect and store samples so they can later be used by police.

“A&E and medical staff have a much bigger role to play,” Mr Mackie says. “The task of collecting evidence belongs to the police, so they see it as the responsibility of the police. But the health and police departments need to work together.”

The spike and stigma around gender is also an issue.

Ms Dines says although data shows 92 per cent of victims are women, men and boys are “much less likely” to report cases, which skews the figures.

“It falls under the umbrella of violence against women and girls, but we also see the same number of testimonies from men and boys,” he says.

“Guys are often hesitant to report it because it’s seen as a girl thing,” Mr. Mackie adds.

Why are there so few cases?

“The fact that there are so few prosecutions doesn’t give people the confidence to come forward,” Mr Mackie says.

He says the few cases that do reach court are often cases where spikes occur alongside another crime such as theft, assault or sexual offence.

But Ms Mackie says the impact on people’s mental health and potential overreactions to substances is such that taking it on the rise should become a crime in itself.

“We can reduce the so-called prank increase if we bring up the specific crime – just attack someone and walk away. Then people will realize they’ve done something wrong and rates will go down,” he said.

Mr Mackie added that a special escalation bill would also ensure that all victims are treated the same.

“Right now, every police agency seems to interpret the law differently, and it even seems to vary from officer to officer.

“If police officers follow the same procedures, everyone from Newcastle to Newquay will be treated the same.”

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