Custody photos of convicts

Freedom of Information (FOI) Act request ref: 01/FIN/25/3431 

Version Date: 25/07/2025

The Corporate Communications Department has provided the following information.

Under the Freedom of Information Act, I am requesting the force's policy on the issue of custody photos of convicts.

Specifically:

1) Are custody photos published on the force's web site? Do they remain there indefinitely?

Custody images are published on the Dorset Police website in relation to proactive court news releases. Any such releases are removed after 28 days.

2) Are there restrictions on who custody photos are made available to? Can any member of the public request them? Can press organisations?

Custody images are published on the Dorset Police website and social media channels in relation to proactive court news releases. These are visible to the public.

Accredited journalists can request custody images for court cases they are publishing. 

3) What criteria are used in determining the release/publication of a custody photo of a person charged with/convicted of an offence? Is there a minimum sentence length requirement for photo publication? Please include every requirement in your response.

The release of a custody image is considered in court cases where the sentence is 12 month or more and no reporting restrictions apply.

The release of a custody image is subject to an assessment by the officer in the case and for sexual offences additional approval by a superintendent.