Impact statements: Police Scotland officers describe toll of assaults

Two Police Scotland officers have told of their experiences of being assaulted while on duty, describing the toll it took on them and their colleagues.

Pc Paul O’Donnell and his police dog Remo were attacked with an iron bar by a man who also bit the dog’s ear.

In a separate incident, Sergeant Sarah Hay was left needing surgery after suffering serious injuries to her face while being violently assaulted.

They spoke after an agreement was reached with the Crown Office which means police who have suffered assaults will be able to provide more information to courts in certain cases.

Pc O’Donnell said the attack took place in March 2020 after he and Remo – a Belgian Malinois – were tasked with finding a suspect in a domestic abuse case who was hiding in waste ground.

Pc O’Donnell, who is based in Glasgow, told the PA news agency: “I sent the dog to apprehend him, but behind his back he had an iron bar.

“So when the dog went to take hold of him, he swung round and smashed my dog in the face with the iron bar, which sheared a canine, fractured his jaw and fractured nine teeth.

“I went in to assist and I got hit in the face with the iron bar as well.”

Despite his injuries, Remo bit the suspect’s leg in order to help his handler.

Pc O’Donnell, 45, said: “The suspect then bit a section out my dog’s ear to try and get him off.”

They were then able to detain the man until help arrived.

Remo was taken to a vet for treatment and it was only on the journey there that Pc O’Donnell realised he had a cut to his face and a concussion.

Pc O’Donnell said he feared Remo’s career as a police dog would have been over as his injuries were so serious.

He said: “There’s no words for it, I would have been absolutely destroyed.

“He comes home with me, he’s with me 24/7 – he’s just your best buddy.”

The man was eventually sentenced to two years in jail after pleading guilty.

Pc O’Donnell said: “Because he pled guilty before it went to trial, there was no option for me to explain how it affected myself or the dogs.”

Remo eventually returned to the beat after seven weeks when his injuries healed – receiving a new titanium tooth.

Sgt Hay was assaulted in September 2014 after she and her partner were called to a domestic abuse incident in Fife.

She said: “It was quite an eerie call, it was dark, we couldn’t really see around the house.”

After they arrived, the suspect jumped on her colleague and started punching him in the head.

As she tried to help, the man then started attacking her.

She said: “This resulted in me being punched numerous times in the face.

“One after the other, blow after blow.”

Both she and her colleagues pressed the emergency buttons on their radios and called for assistance, after which back-up arrived.

Her face was “a mess” and her injuries were so severe she needed surgery, with six metal plates placed in her face.

Her colleagues who responded were “quite affected” when they saw how badly she was hurt.

Altogether she was off work for 10 weeks as she recovered.

She said: “Even now, going to incidents seven years later, there is that fear in the back of my head that this is going to happen again.

“Maybe not specifically to me, but to one of the officers on my team.”

Her attacker was arrested and granted bail, before breaching the terms of his licence and being held on remand.

He pled guilty to the assault on Sgt Hay, meaning she was not called to give evidence in court.

Sgt Hay said: “For me, this victim impact statement, it’s important.

“It would have really helped me get a bit more closure on the incident and get my point heard.”