Senior police officials have accused prosecutors of treating police officers as subordinates and interfering in criminal investigations, according to research published in the wake of the Peter Murrell scandal. The allegations highlight long-standing tensions between Police Scotland and the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS).
Research conducted by former Police Scotland superintendent Martin Gallagher found that retired senior officers viewed the relationship with the Crown Office not as a partnership but as a "master and servant" arrangement. These officers, with over 300 years of combined experience, felt that Crown Office involvement in high-profile and sensitive inquiries had become increasingly intrusive.
This dynamic has drawn renewed attention following Operation Branchform, the investigation into SNP finances that led to former party chief executive Peter Murrell being jailed for embezzling over £400,000. The investigation also saw former First Minister Nicola Sturgeon investigated but not charged, a decision that drew criticism.
Gallagher's research indicates that the traditional model, where police investigate and report findings to prosecutors for a decision on criminal proceedings, has blurred over the past two decades. Prosecutors have become more involved in directing and supervising investigations through "advice and guidance" reports.
Some former officers described the relationship as "a very subordinate, domineering and one-sided" and complained that COPFS staff could be dismissive of police expertise. One retiree stated, "In general, COPFS staff always treated police as their servants." Another noted that "Some COPFS staff felt that the police were there to do their bidding and this often exceeded their remit whilst some officers bowed to the wishes of the Crown even when it was not appropriate."
It is understood that officers wished to re-interview Ms. Sturgeon during the Branchform investigation after she submitted a written statement, but this did not proceed after discussions with COPFS.
Gallagher warned that such tensions risk undermining public confidence in the justice system, particularly when decision-making is under intense scrutiny. He argued that accountability is obscured because while police are often the public face of controversial investigations, prosecutors' substantial input into key decisions can remain hidden.
The former superintendent suggested that the issues exposed by the Murrell affair have been building for years and called for a re-evaluation of the relationship between prosecutors and police.
Police Scotland stated that relations between the organizations remain strong, with a spokesman saying, "Police Scotland works closely with the COPFS. Both organisations take a collaborative approach to investigating and prosecuting crime and play an important role in keeping Scotland safe."
A COPFS spokesman refuted the characterization of the relationship, stating, "We do not recognise the characterisation of the relationship between COPFS and Police Scotland set out by some anonymous sources quoted in this opinion article. Collaboration between police investigators and prosecutors in complex or sensitive cases is a well-established feature of Scotland’s justice system. Working together does not diminish the operational independence of the police, nor does it compromise the independent exercise of prosecutorial decision-making."