Spit Hoods (11266_17)
Request
Q1 Do officers in your force use spit hoods?
Q2 If the answer to Q1 is yes, please provide figures for the number of times spit hoods have been deployed on children aged 17 years or younger in (a) 2016 and (b) from 1 January 2017 up to and including 30th September 2017.
Q3 Please provide a breakdown of the figures in Q2(a) and (b) by gender, age and ethnicity for the individuals upon whom the spit hood was used. For example:
Year Subject Gender Age Subject Ethnicity (16+1) Description
2016 M 17 Asian Bangladeshi
2016 F 15 White British
2017 M 13 Other Black Background
etc etc etc etc
Response
West Midlands Police do not currently use spit hoods.
The force is planning to introduce them but a formal date for their roll out has not been established yet.
https://www.west-midlands.police.uk/news/3513/spit-guards-protect-police-and-public-disease