Police officers need to be given additional specialised training to deal with the growing problems of domestic violence on the Island, experts have claimed.

Lawyer Susan Moore-Williams said the outcome of a complaint of abuse depended largely on which officer dealt with it and, too often, no action was taken.

The lawyer for the Women's Resource Centre in Hamilton said: "There is already some training for Police officers, which I am involved in, but I think there needs to be additional guidance. It clearly is not enough.

"I have unfortunately come across cases that I did not believe were handled properly. My fear is that, as a result, somebody will end up dead because a previous call for help has not been followed up.'' But she said some officers were also unaware of the power they had to deal with incidents.

"There are also officers that are ill-informed about the laws and legislation,'' she added.

"For example, some don't realise that the Police can prosecute a case themselves if the injuries are fairly serious -- even if the victim withdraws his or her complaint.

"However, that does not always happen.'' She said part of the problem was that Police officers were products of society and the bias it brings.

For many officers, abuse within homes is something they just do not like to get involved in, perferring, instead, if the couple resolved the issues by themselves.

Some may even feel they have no right to be there, or see nothing wrong with violence within a home.

Training for Police She added: "Like in everything, you get some very good, professional and sympathetic officers, who do everything in their power to be supportive. But, we also have some who need more training and assistance. They have to be taught how to be senstive and appreciate there could be serious problems.'' However, she sympathised with officers and said they could get frustrated after repeatedly receiving calls from the same people, who for whatever reason decided to withdraw the complaint.

She added: "But all officers should be professional and should treat each case seriously, no matter how many times they have dealt with the people before.

"The time they choose not to intervene is the time that someone could die.'' Physical Abuse Centre chairwoman June Augustus said Police failed to prosecute enough cases when complaints were withdrawn. And she said Police should be given the power to go ahead and prosecute in such cases.

A Police spokesman said recent amendments had been made to laws over how cases of domestic abuse can be dealt with by officers. The law now gives the Police Commissioner the right to act as the complainant and proceed with the case, if the victim decides to withdraw his or her complaint.

However, if no complaint has been made in the first place, there is nothing Police can do.

He said all officers were given instruction during their initial basic training in the Police Service on how to handle domestic violence incidents and regular ongoing courses were also held for all ranks.

He added: "We run regular courses with The Physical Abuse Centre and The Women's Resource Centre, along with our own experienced Police officers.

"The training we do covers two main areas, firstly the legislation, regarding a number of things, including stalking offences and Protection Orders.

"But also we teach them what the procedure is when they are called to a domestic incident. If it comes to it, there may be the removal of people from the house.''