KNIVES, CRIME AND STATISTICS

 

by TheJusticeofthePeace @ 18. Oct. 2010. – 12:09:47

If we don`t know what`s happening it`s difficult to take measures against the event if the event is unpleasant. If the event is illness correct diagnosis is required to effect treatment and aid recovery. We hear almost daily of fatal results owing to mistakes in diagnosis. And so it is with crime. And so it is with crime statistics. Diagnosis and treatment in a statistical sense is essential to reduce the scourge of knife crime.

It is virtually a hopeless task to ascertain the extent to which knives [and bladed instruments] are carried, used and punished and form a comprehensive picture of this nationwide problem. It is as if the authorities tasked with the assembly and publication of this knowledge have obfuscation as a primary directive and dissemination as a secondary. As a not unnatural consequence many, most? people have little confidence in what they read and their opinions are moulded not by the facts but by their general political and social outlooks.

Within the last few days various reports have been published in the print media. Staffordshire Police are proud to publish their latest half year figures which show, they say, that crime has fallen. A local judge seems to echo this in one respect when he comments that deterrent sentences or to use his words ,”to send a message”, are keeping down knife crime in Stoke. I presume his honour is getting his information from a reliable source because his county police and the Home Office don`t tell us much about knife crime in Stoke, whether or not it is increasing or decreasing or whether deterrence plays any part in these unknown statistics. The closest approximation to recent information is available from the Ministry of Justice. It is not often a commercial organisation provides interesting information on a topic not directly related to its own interests but Insight Security has some thoughtful comment.

In December 2008 the then Labour Justice Minister inter alia that , ”All knife crime offenders given any amount of community payback as part of their sentence will now have to do at least eighteen hours of work a week and potentially be subject to a curfew that keeps them off the streets in the evening and a probation appointment during the week on top of these hours”. I am doubtful that that disposal is being observed. I am also doubtful that a Minister should be interfering such that he is appearing to micro manage sentencing. In any event there is no way to find out the true situation and that in itself is an indictment. 

The victims of knife crime are generally aged fifteen to twenty five. All those reading this and others who have a personal interest in the well being of themselves or relatives of this age group would be well advised to think twice when reading the latest boasts of Chief Constables that “the war on knife crime is being won”, or words to that oleaginous effect.