Transcript Crime Statistics

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Crime Info and Statistics
Presentation by Dr Peter Jepson
Prior to this lecture you
should read and précis
Chapter 11 of ‘The ELS’
by Jacqueline Martin
5th edition.
Précis notes will be checked
Come to class …
 With your PowerPoint notes
 With your read & précis notes
 Ask questions (raise your hand)
 Turn off your mobile
 In 1950 there were half a million
recorded crimes.
 By the 1990s it was 5m per annum.
 However, these are recorded crimes
and the British Crime Survey
suggests that only 1 in 5 crimes are
reported and the true figure could be
around 19m per annum.
Activity …
 Undertake the Questions on page 144
of ‘The ELS’.
 Reproduce the figures in Figure 11.3.
Royal Commission on Criminal
Procedure (Phillips) set up 1978.
 They said the law on police powers
was piecemeal and haphazard. This
led to the PACE 1984.
Runciman Commission
Terms of reference.
 ‘Examine the effectiveness of the
criminal justice system in England &
Wales in securing the conviction of
those guilty of criminal offences and
the acquittal of those who are
innocent, having regard to the
efficient use of resources.’
 What was behind the need for the
Runciman Commission?
 Answer: Miscarriages of Justice.
 Can you name some of these
miscarriages?
 Answer: Guildford Four, Birmingham
Six, the Maguires and Judith Ward.
Also, Tottenham Three, Stefan
Kiszko
Police Powers guided
by PACE 1984.
 Eight codes of practice established
under s.66 of PACE …
 List them all …
 Code A - Powers to Stop and Search.
 Code B - Powers to search premises.
 Code C - Detention, treatment and
questioning of suspects.
 Code D - Rules for identification
procedures.
 Code E - Tape recording of
interviews
 Code F - On visual recording of
interviews
 Code G - On powers of arrest
 Code H - Detention, treatment and
questioning of terrorist suspects
under s.41 of the Terrorism Act 2000
Some of the rules only apply to
‘serious arrestable offences’
These defined under s.116 of PACE.
 Include.. treason, murder,
kidnapping, hostage-taking,
manslaughter, rape and serious
sexual offences, drug trafficking,
firearm and explosive offences and
other offences that are likely to have
serious consequences for the state
or public order.
Powers to Stop and Search
Governed by s1 to a.7 of PACE
 s.1 power to stop and search (people
and vehicles) in a public place. Public
place includes pub car parks and could
include a private garden if PC has good
reason for believing he does not live at
that address.
 Pc must have "reasonable grounds
of suspicion that the person is in
possession of stolen goods or
prohibited articles" (offensive
weapons or articles for use in
connection with a burglary or theft).
 Pc must give his name, his station
and the reason for the search.
 If the Pc fails to give a reason for the
search then it is unlawful.
 If the search is in public they can
only request that the suspect
removes a outer coat, jacket and
gloves (s2(9)).
Para 1.7 of Code A says …
Reasonable suspicion can never be supported on
the basis of personal factors alone. For example,
a person’s colour, age, hairstyle or manner of
dress, or the fact that he is known to have a
previous conviction for possession of an
unlawful article, cannot be used alone or in
combination with each other as the sole basis on
which to search that person. Nor may it be found
on the basis of stereo-typed images of certain
persons or groups as being more likely to commit
offences."
 Despite this code there is evidence that
certain types of people - especially
black youths who are more likely to be
stopped than other groups.
 Research by Sanders - ‘Controlling
the Discretion of the Individual
Officer’ - in 1993 showed that
knowledge that someone has
previous convictions was the main
factors that led to a PC’s decision to
stop and search.
 In 1986 there were 100,000 stop and
search incidents - by 1995 it had
reached 700,000.
 See the chart on page 150 of 'ELS'.
Make a summary of the key statistics
found on page 150 of ELS.
Following the Macpherson Report stop
and searches stopped - why?
Indeed, the police have suggested this
is why there has been a rise in crime.
Note that the figures do not include
‘voluntary’ searches.
Other powers to
stop and search
 Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 powers to
search for controlled drugs.
 Prevention of Terrorism Act 1989
where reasonable suspicion exists
that your have been involved in
terrorism.
 Criminal Justice and Public Order
Act 1994 - s.60 gives power to stop
and search in anticipation of violence
(this can only occur where it has
been authorised by a senior police
officer who believes serious violence
may occur in the locality).
s.60 is very wide and even gives police
powers to stop and search where a
PC does not have reasonable
suspicion with regards to that
particular person.
 Is this a breach of civil liberties?
 Can you think of a human right it
could infringe?
Road checks - s.4 PACE
 Where there is a reasonable
suspicion that a person who has
committed a serious arrestable
offence is at large in a particular area
- s.4 enables a high ranking officer
(Supt or higher) to do a road check which means stop vehicles.
Powers to search premises
 Police can enter premises, without
the occupier’s permission to make a
search, if a magistrate has issued a
warrant authorising a search.
 Such a warrant is normally issued under
s.8 PACE.If a magistrate is satisfied that
the police have reasonable grounds for
believing that a serious arrestable offence
has been committed or that there is
material on the premises that the police
have reasonable grounds for believing
that there is material on the premises that
is likely to be of substantial value in the
investigation of an offence.
 In addition, the Magistrate needs to
be satisfied that another person
cannot let them in, or that the
purpose of the search could be
frustrated if police cannot gain
immediate entry.
 Warrant must specify the premises to
be searched and the items or
persons sought.
 Warrant applies to one entry on one
occasion, and within one month.
 Police must identify themselves and
produce a copy of the warrant to those
present.
 They should search at a ‘reasonable
hour’.
 In R v Longman (1988) police posed as an
Interflora person. Court of Appeal held
force or subterfuge could lawfully be used
in order to gain entry with a search
warrant.
Entry without a warrant
 As per s.17 PACE to arrest a person
named in an arrest warrant, or someone
for an arrestable offence - or to capture an
escaped prisoner.
 Power also under s.18 to enter the
premises of a person under arrest - if an
officer has reasonable grounds for
believing that there is evidence on the
premises (controlled by the person under
arrest) relating to the arrest.
28
s.32 allows a search where arrested
person was on premises immediately
before the arrest.
 Though in R v Badham 1987 this
power under s.32 only allows a
search immediately after the arrest
(canﾕt come back hours later).
Breach of the Peace
 Police can enter premises - under
common law - to prevent a breach of the
peace. These even applies in private
premises - see McLeod v Commissioner of
the Met Police (1994) in which police
entered to deal with a domestic
quarrel.Search with the consent of the
occupier is possible.But it must be given
in writing.
If police abuse powers there are
consequences  They can be sued in a civil case.
 Also evidence that they have
obtained in an unlawful search can
be excluded in any trial.
Under s78(1) of PACE
 "In any proceedings the court may refuse
to allow evidence on which the
prosecution proposes to rely if it appears
to the court that, having regard to all the
circumstances, including the
circumstances in which the evidence was
obtained, the admission of the evidence
would have an adverse effect on the
fairness of the proceedings that the court
ought not to admit it."
Powers of arrest
s.24 of PACE
 Private citizens as well as Pc’s can
exercise some of these powers.
 This applies in situations that
involve, or may involve, an
‘arrestable offence’.
An arrestable offence is
 (1) Any offence for which the sentence is
fixed by law (e.g. murder).
 (2) Any offence of which the maximum
sentence that can be given to an adult is 5
years (theft - 7) (a.b.h - 5) (rape - life)
(Robbery - life).
 (3) Any offence determined by Parliament
(e.g. taking a motor vehicle without
consent - 6 months).
s.24 of PACE allows police and private
citizens to arrest in circumstances
of..
 (1) Anyone in the act of committing
an arrestable offence.
 (2) Anyone you have reasonable
grounds for suspecting to be
committing an arrestable offence.
 (3) Anyone who has committed an
arrestable offence.
 (4) Where an arrestable offence has
been committed - anyone whom he
has reasonable grounds for
suspecting to be guilty of it (even if it
turns out they are not).
 Police also have powers to arrest
 (1) anyone who is about to commit an
arrestable offence.
 (2) Anyone whom he has reasonable
grounds he is about to commit an
arrestable offence.
 (3) Where he has reasonable grounds for
believing that an arrestable offence has
been committee (even if it has not).
Private citizens do not have these 3 rights.
 See R v Self (1992).
 Castorina v Chief Const Surrey (1988)
Court of Appeal held that reasonable
grounds for suspecting did not mean that
there had to be sufficient grounds that
would make an ordinary person think that
D was guilty. It is sufficient that the facts
lead an ordinary person to suspect that
the D was guilty.
Powers of arrest - activity
 Undertake the activities on page 158
and 165 of ‘The ELS’ - answering all
the relevant questions.
 Re-produce Figure 11.9
Split into Four Law Firms …
 (1) - Powers of Detention - see Page 158 of
The English Legal System (note the time
limits shown in Figure 11.7).
 (2) - Police Interviews of Suspects - see
Page 1610 of ‘The ELS’.
 (3) - Searches, finger prints and body
samples - see Page 264.
 (4) - Complaints against the Police - see
Page 166.
Exam Questions
 Plan BOTH of the examination
questions on Page 167 of ‘The ELS’.