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  1. Kevin Morrell Staff WBS
    #1 20:18, Mon 26 Oct 2015 (edited 17:09, Thu 15 Sep 2016)
    What things make you more or less confident in the police?

    Confidence Measures

    The first list below shows some factors that have been used to measure confidence in the police, the second list shows some factors that have been used to measure a lack of confidence... are any of these more or less important to you and could you say why?

    Also... can you comment on whether you think these are good measures of confidence? Are any measures missing?

    What makes you feel confident in the police:

    1. They're always around/local/available/they're there when you need them

    2. They always come when called/very responsive

    3. They do a good job

    4. There are no problems/it's very quiet/crime free area

    5. Based on past experiences I have had

    6. They’re helpful/supportive

    7. There has been an increase in police presence

    8. They’re friendly and approachable

    9. They’re reliable

    10. They deal with crime problems

    11. I don’t have any issues with the police

    What doesn't make you feel confident in the police:

    1. Limited police attendance/officers aren't visible enough

    2. No action is taken/police don't deal with issues (after being reported)

    3. Previous poor experience with the police

    4. Slow response/they act slowly

    5. Not enough patrolling done on foot/ officers on the beat

    6. Never been in contact/had dealings/used the police service

    7. Poor attitude of police officers

    8. Don’t respond/turn up when called

    9. Don’t listen to residents

    10. Lack the resources/manpower to deal with crime issues

    11. Poor/unfair treatment

    12. Poor service quality/standards/performance

    13. Poor communication/lack of feedback

    14. Don’t deal with minor crimes

    15. Seem uninterested

    16. Unhelpful/not supportive

     
  2. Giuliana Battisti Staff WBS
    #2 14:46, Fri 6 Nov 2015
    What things make you more or less confident in the police?

    Paradoxically seeing them walking/driving around makes me feel safe. That is irrespective of the reason for their presence.  

    Never lost confidence in them.

    I was burgled few times and I witnessed a thief breaking into my neighbour's house. The police came promptly. They were very reassuring and did a very good job.

    I also appreciate when I see them by the roadside because of a broken down car or an accident.

    Seeing them where they are needed makes me appreciate a great deal what they do.

     

     

     
  3. A guest user
    #3 14:53, Fri 6 Nov 2015
    What things make you more or less confident in the police?

    There are two aspects that I am particularly concerned about when it comes to policing. In both of these categories the UK is doing very well compared to experiences in other countries.

    The first one is how they deal with people when they are approached or when they want people to do something. In the US they order you around as if you are children and if you are asking questions they just start shouting, repeating their orders. No engagement whatsoever. In the UK policeman are generally approachable and you are not afraid to be arrested (or possibly shot) straight away.

    The second one is how they deal with minorities. In Germany for example a black person can expect to be stopped in the street or on a train station and asked for papers. Racial profiling is not seen as a bad thing but an efficient way to filter out potential illegal immegrants. How digrading this is, simply does not feature in the mind of policemen there. Again the UK is great. No experiences along that line here.

     

     
  4. Michael Synnott Staff WBS
    #4 09:54, Sun 8 Nov 2015
    What things make you more or less confident in the police?

    I think it is useful to distinguish between the police and policing in this matter.  In our daily lives we have become accustomed to a very blurred line between these two.  For example, sports stadia, shopping centres and large stores are entirely "policed" by private agencies.  Even official manifestations of the law'n'order sector have become diffused with a wide range of agencies having the right to enter our homes univited (e.g. border security, customs and excise and civil nuclear security etc.).   It a  is also the case that if I was arrested on the street, I would possibly be carried away by private agency such as G4S; I might also be held in a private custody suite awaiting trasport to my court hearing again by a private agency.   And if convicted I might well serve my time in a private prison and upon release, my parole officer might also be employed by a private results driven agency.  Finally, the UK is watched over by highest number of video cameras in Europe which are monitored in the main by private sector agencies.  This seems to raise two questions (1) what is it that police actually do for which we  need to feel confidence in; (2) what do we mean by confidence?  For example, I am confident that the average police officer could physically overcome and arrest anybody they choose.  But am I confident that they are acting in fair manner?  Recent stats regarding stop and search laws and rape proscecutions have caused some people to reflect on their confidence in the police.  I am also becoming less confident that the police can sustain even a basic level of service should the next round of proposed public expenditure cuts be implemented.  Yet faced with a list of things that define a police force, how would I rank them in terms of those that must be preserved at all costs.  However, would I be ranking the importance of specific  services and outcomes with no thought for who should actually carry them out.

    Michael Synnott

     
  5. Kevin Morrell Staff WBS
    #5 16:15, Sun 8 Nov 2015 (edited 14:38, Thu 12 Nov 2015)
    What things make you more or less confident in the police?

    Thank you for these contributions.

    One aspect to confidence is visibility or presence and Giuliana you are right that there is a slight paradox here since police presence could signal crime. Also, whilst some people might feel reassured to see the police in their area others may not be assured. A dimension to visibility that perhaps hasn't been explored in full is to think what it means in cyberspace. This is perhaps significant since although crime figures are falling, this is only the case if you count online crimes such as fraud separately - http://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2015/oct/15/crime-rate-rise-cyber-offences.

    One aspect to this might be using virtual technology more though it may not satisfy people who don't experience a real presence when they feel they need it most - https://uk.news.yahoo.com/police-tell-victims-crime-call-094724695.html#zkO4I8R

    That comparative perspective based on personal experience is interesting, thank you for sharing it. I cannot comment on policing in Germany but it is interesting to read about your experience of racial profiling. Across the world perceptions of confidence in the police are lower among people from minority ethnic communities. The most current debate in the UK relevant to profiling focuses on the use of stop and search tactics and there has been a conflict between the Home Secretary and the Metropolitan Police on this - http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/crime/11946081/Theresa-May-says-police-knife-crime-claims-are-simply-not-true.html

    The statistics on this are quite complicated and though a reduction in stop and search does seem to have been associated with a rise in knife crime it is not clear the extent to which that is a causal relationship - http://www.police-foundation.org.uk/news/187/23/Stop-and-search-and-knife-crime-in-London-what-we-know-and-what-we-don-t/

    In other words there is not unequivocal support for the claim that reducing stop and search leads to a rise in knife crime - http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/crime/11954934/Scotland-Yard-chief-defies-Theresa-May-over-stop-and-search.html

    In terms of police versus policing Michael, that's also an important and subtle point - there is a question as to what is public and private an interesting development is communities exploring whether they can choose to fund additional police officers - http://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/617635/Residents-180-thousand-pounds-pay-police-force-homes-criminals

    or perhaps private security companies - http://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2015/nov/03/seaside-town-residents-frinton-pay-security-firm-patrol-streets

    The statistics you refer to on rape convictions can be found here - http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/huge-regional-variations-for-rape-convictions-across-england-and-wales-a6722966.htm

     
  6. A guest user
    #6 02:07, Mon 9 Nov 2015
    What things make you more or less confident in the police?

    Generally I am not very confident in the police, especially when it comes to quality of life crimes such as persistent begging in particular areas, which is clearly done by professional begging clans. Begging is illegal in the UK under the Vagrancy Act, and it does affect the quality of life of people who live in areas targeted by professional beggars. The police does nothing. Similarly with home robberies, which is a more serious crime; nothing gets done. Also - on the couple of occasions that I went into a police station, they are not approachable at all. One has to wait for an indeterminate amount of time, and perhaps an officer is visible, or not visible at all. And they are usually behind glass screens. What kind of community service is this? Finally, the practice of kettling is one that I consider despicable and an abuse of power. 

     
  7. Kevin Morrell Staff WBS
    #7 14:54, Thu 12 Nov 2015
    What things make you more or less confident in the police?

    Thanks for your contribution and for sharing your experiences. I think the screens protect people inside from being attacked and mean they can wear normal clothing. Here is an article on the use of these in Australia where they were installed after two police officers were stabbed - http://www.heraldsun.com.au/leader/south-east/security-screens-installed-at-endeavour-hills-and-narre-warren-police-stations/news-story/39e9d5001e485d6a7a2c132dff93dd7f

    You raise an issue that was considered in an HMIC report - here is an extract

    “While the public retain allegiance to the traditional front counter, the experience of actually using them can be less inviting. Despite the best efforts to improve accessibility it is often said that the appearance of the front counters (i.e. their physical architecture, often with protective screens, intercoms/microphones and fixed furniture) can create an aura of hostility. A shift to shared provision does provide an opportunity for the police to redefine their approach to the relationship with the public and become closer to the community by making services available to where the public choose to be or would be for other purposes.” the fuller report is here - https://www.london.gov.uk/sites/default/files/Policing%26PublicAccess%20UPLOAD.pdf

    Kettling is a tactic that has caused a great deal of controversy. There are some connected articles on it here - http://www.theguardian.com/uk/kettling

     
  8. A guest user
    #8 18:05, Fri 20 Nov 2015
    What things make you more or less confident in the police?

    The list of things increasing confidence is effectively a description of the perfect police force while that of the things decreasing confidence describes a force unable to perform its basic duties. The police force we currently have lies somewhere between these two extremes; although, from my experience, much closer to the perfect rather than the imperfect. As in all things provided in our name by the state, there is a balance to be struck between the quality of the service offered and the financial resources available. The balance we have at the moment is a force that provides a very good service in emergencies but that is less effective when dealing with ‘run of the mill’ crime. In addition, support for rural communities is increasingly patchy especially at night and weekends. Any improvement would require substantial re-organisation and mean significantly higher costs. Would the general public be willing to pay additional taxes to improve policing? In theory probably yes, in reality almost certainly no. 

     
  9. Fred Dahlmann Staff WBS
    #9 07:43, Thu 3 Dec 2015
    What things make you more or less confident in the police?

    I have absolutely zero experience with dealing with the Police. That’s probably a good sign (both in that I haven’t needed them or they haven’t needed to interact with me). So without any experience it’s difficult to judge their performance and my level of confidence in their work. Intuitively the list of characteristics provided make sense to me. I also suppose similar to things like corporate reputation, confidence in the police can be quickly destroyed by single events while it takes a long time to be restored. 

     

     
  10. Kevin Morrell Staff WBS
    #10 14:30, Wed 23 Dec 2015
    What things make you more or less confident in the police?

    Thanks for posting Frederick - few people do come into contact with the police and this makes the question of public confidence as a whole difficult to measure. It's also not always clear whether impressions of policing are informed by local or national events.

     
  11. A guest user
    #11 22:10, Tue 29 Dec 2015
    What things make you more or less confident in the police?

    How much one has confidence depends on personal knowledge, that of those close-by (so maybe hearsay) and is provided via the media. 

    In the UK large swathes of the country, albeit with a small population, have very little contact with the police, but confidence issue can arise there too. Fo example the death of Fiona Pilkington near the small town of Hinckley in 2007, see: http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-leicestershire-17309285

    Urban areas are different, even more so in the bigger metropolitan counties, let alone London. Policing is busier, crime and disorder are often far more intrusive on people's daily lives and there is far greater personal experience. Try this report from 2014, aside from the headline, it has some polling figures: The poll, for Sky News, found 53 per cent of members of the public questioned in the survey agreed that forces try to hide wrongdoing by officers...Of those polled 72 per cent said they would trust the police to act if they reported a crime and 67 per cent would trust officers to deal with them if they were the victim of a crime. From: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/crime/10578203/Public-suspect-cover-ups-by-police-poll-finds.html Or for a London viewpoint see: http://www.standard.co.uk/news/london/two-thirds-trust-police-despite-stephen-lawrence-and-plebgate-scandals-9192334.html

    An excellent report based on polling in 2014 has a historical timeline graph, comparing 'trust' in local police officers, senior police officers, my local MP and leading Conservative politicians. Yes the police are trusted more than the MPs and politicians! See: https://yougov.co.uk/news/2013/10/21/trust-police-steady-despite-scandals/

    It is a simple fact - which has not changed over many years - that the public have high confidence and satisfaction with the INITIAL police response. Afterwards satisfaction drops, if not plummets. In part this is due to a lack of communication and in my view a reluctance on the police's part to admit reality.

    One indicator of confidence is found - from a recent CPS document on polling victim and witness experiences. I noted this: Victims and witnesses were asked whether they would consent to being a witness in a criminal trial in future if they were asked to do so. 60 per cent of witnesses said they would, compared to 52 per cent of victims. From: https://www.cps.gov.uk/publications/research/cps_victim_and_witness_survey_sept_2015.pdf

    Here is a local example. A neighbourhood team use social media to alert an entire borough (250k plus residents) that there has been an increase in night time house burglaries, no detail is given on where or the methods used. Does that really help? Later the management admitted clarity was needed.

    Some issues are often in the media foreground, but does the public share that level of interest? For many Stop & Search remains controversial, others dislike the use of Taser, criticism of historical police actions Hillsborough comes to mind (partly as the Home Secretary referred to it in 2015) and not to overlook child sexual abuse - although responsibility for responding should be shared with many other public and private institutions.

    For far more I would contend getting the police to answer the phone (not the initial call) would help and that when requested they arrive reasonably promptly is what matters.

     
  12. Kevin Morrell Staff WBS
    #12 12:15, Wed 6 Jan 2016
    What things make you more or less confident in the police?

    Thank you very much for such a careful, extensive and well sourced answer. I'm working in this project to try to understand some of these issues better and the question of what things ultimately influence confidence are crucial, at the same time as being difficult to address and measure. This is a really valuable and helpful comment for me, and the links are useful too in linking this to current discussions and issues that remain current. Thank you again, I hope you will consider posting again in future as the project develops and the research findings start to take shape.

     
  13. Kevin Morrell Staff WBS
    #13 20:08, Mon 8 Feb 2016 (edited 20:09, Mon 8 Feb 2016)
    What things make you more or less confident in the police?

    One aspect to feeling confident in the police is transparency and greater insight into police decisions. An interesting development in North Yorkshire Police has been inviting people to follow officers on patrol as lay observers. The link to this is here:

    http://www.yorkpress.co.uk/news/14259541.People_invited_to_join_North_Yorkshire_Police_on_patrol/?ref=twtrec

    Chief Inspector Mark Grange said: "Under the lay observation scheme, officers have the opportunity to demonstrate their use of stop and search, while members of the public will be provided with the opportunity to see it in action, and provide feedback based on their observations."

     
  14. Kevin Morrell Staff WBS
    #14 09:03, Fri 22 Apr 2016 (edited 14:42, Fri 1 Jul 2016)
    What things make you more or less confident in the police?

    One aspect to increased confidence in policing is that the public may be more willing to report crime. This may be particularly important in recording some categories of crime such as domestic violence, sexual offences and hate crimes. This has been one explanation put forward for an apparently paradoxical situation: the most recent CSEW figures show that crime is down, but the number of crimes that have been recorded by the police is up.

    Extracts below are from http://www.policeprofessional.com/news.aspx?id=25970

    National Police Chiefs' Council Lead for Crime Recording, Chief Constable Jeff Farrar, said it was encouraging to see a further reduction of overall crime, as shown in the CSEW.

    “A seven per cent increase in police recorded crime reflects the greater accuracy in crime recording processes and the increased willingness and ease of victims to report incidents to the police,” he said.

    The number of sexual offences recorded by the police has increased dramatically, up 29 per cent on the previous year. This brings the total to over 100,000 in a single year for the first time.

    Rapes and other sexual offences were at their highest level since the National Crime Recording Standard was introduced in 2003.

    As well as improvements in recording, these rises are thought to reflect a greater willingness of victims to come forward to report such crimes.

     
  15. Kevin Morrell Staff WBS
    #15 18:15, Tue 12 Jul 2016 (edited 18:25, Tue 12 Jul 2016)
    What things make you more or less confident in the police?

    David Lammy MP for Tottenham has been carrying out a review into racial and ethnic biases across criminal justice. One aspect to this, in terms of public confidence in policing, is that although the police are the most obvious front-line representation of the criminal justice system, the way that other parts of the system work also affect people's confidence in values such as impartiality.

    This includes the Crown Prosecution Service, the youth justice system, decisions relating to sentencing and custody and rehabilitation services. It also includes the prison service where people from Black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) backgrounds make up more than 1/4 of prisoners - but only 14% of the wider population.

    Indeed, across each aspect to criminal justice we see an over-representation of people from BAME backgrounds. This kind of racial disparity is something that the criminal justice system in England and Wales has in common with other jurisdictions such as the U.S. where in some cities the fault lines in terms of race are much more sharply drawn. The review is discussed in the following:

    http://www.policeprofessional.com/news.aspx?id=26623

    http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-36736878

    https://www.theguardian.com/law/2016/jan/30/race-bias-court-system

    http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/david-cameron-appoints-david-lammy-to-lead-review-into-racism-in-the-justice-system-a6844081.html

    The home page at the Ministry of Justice is:

    https://consult.justice.gov.uk/digital-communications/lammy-review-of-bame-representation-in-cjs

    With relevant announcements on this page:

    https://www.gov.uk/government/announcements?departments%5B%5D=lammy-review

     
  16. Kevin Morrell Staff WBS
    #16 00:15, Fri 15 Jul 2016
    What things make you more or less confident in the police?

    Here is the story behind the winner of this year's Police Bravery awards:

    PC Sean Cannon was on a call at the other end of a street in Bradford when he heard shouts for help. "I saw smoke billowing out of a door and a kid at a window ledge, preparing to jump with a neighbour waiting to catch him. I heard people shouting 'babies, babies' so I took it there were other kids inside, so I ran into the house." PC Cannon, of the West Yorkshire force, kept returning to the terraced house to pull out various family members from different rooms, as flames and smoke filled the property. The 45-year-old said: "I got upstairs and there was thick, choking smoke, coming down like a black liquid. I got on my knees and took a breath and thought 'I'm in trouble here'. "I found a couple of children in the bedrooms and came running out with them. Someone said I had one under each arm and threw them at him, but I don't remember that." He went in again, ran up the stairs and got on his knees to feel around for more trapped people. "Thankfully, I felt a pair of ankles and found another child, brought him out, went back and got another child." But even then his heroics were not over, as he was told there was a relative in an attic bedroom. He said: "I got up there and found this lady who didn't speak English and was too frightened to move. I had to drag her down two flights of stairs, shielding her face in my chest through the flames, until we got outside." PC Cannon rescued five members of the Herak family, originally from Slovakia - two boys aged three and 13, two girls aged five and nine and their great aunt was was 59.

    Taken from http://news.sky.com/story/fire-hero-police-officer-up-for-bravery-award-10500976

     
  17. Kevin Morrell Staff WBS
    #17 22:41, Sat 20 Aug 2016 (edited 17:08, Thu 15 Sep 2016)
    What things make you more or less confident in the police?

    Justice Reforms and Problem-solving Courts

    A great many things can change in relation to policing and criminal justice which the police have no control over. These could be social trends, the economic climate or even events in another country that affect how policing as an institution or social practice is perceived. One aspect to policing is also its place in the criminal justice system overall.  Changes in the political climate or even changes in personnel when it comes to ministers can affect the way in which the justice system is perceived. A contemporary (at the time of writing) example of this is the shift in rhetoric and de-emphasising of "problem-solving courts" following Mr Gove's departure as Justice Secretary,  summed up in the sub headline of the article below "Rehabilitation system seen as too soft on crime as new justice secretary backpedals on reform".

    https://www.theguardian.com/law/2016/aug/20/liz-truss-abandons-michael-gove-plan-for-problem-solving-courts

     
  18. Kevin Morrell Staff WBS
    #18 15:40, Wed 14 Sep 2016 (edited 15:42, Wed 14 Sep 2016)
    What things make you more or less confident in the police?

    Tasers and Spitguards / Spithoods

    In the wake of a number of deaths in the UK and the USA, the use of Tasers has been under scrutiny recently. In common with the use of spitguards or spithoods they have been seen by some as controversial and part of a combination of technology and tactics that are associated with an increased militarization of the police - a characterization which is worth considering in a fuller context since in the US officers are routinely armed.

    In the US Tasers are not considered firearms and not subject to the same regulatory constraints. In the UK Tasers are operated by trained firearms officers and they have an operational advantage over other close-proximity UOF such as CS gas or Baton strikes in that they can be used from a distance - so they can reduce the risk of injury to officers from knives. That they can be deployed in some situations that would otherwise require firearms is also an argument for their use with rural forces who may have to wait longer for backup.

    Critics of Tasers suggest that their use is associated with greater risk of death or serious injury compared to other uses of force (UOF) and argue officers should have body worn video (BWV) if these are used at all. Those who advocate their use argue that all UOF is potentially lethal (there have been more deaths via use of restraint for example) and that Tasers are not directly to blame for fatalities but that deaths associated with them have arisen as a result of underlying medical conditions.

    The research evidence on Tasers is mixed with some studies reporting increased risk of fatalities and other studies reporting no additional relative risk. A complicating factor here is that some of the commentators/scientists are also funded and have Conflicts of Interest (COI) - either as plaintiffs in cases against Taser manufacturers, or as part of the advisory board of Taser international. There is a difficulty in arriving at any kind of definitive answer about lethality and risk in that it is difficult to recreate the dynamics of use in real life, where levels of arousal: anxiety, fear, rage, panic, desperation and so on may be an important part of a complex picture. Clinical trials have tended to be small scale, partly because there are ethical implications of intentionally harming people and partly because not very many people volunteer. In some clinical trials on humans, people with existing cardiac conditions have been screened out which is not possible in a real world setting of course.
    A number of deaths described as Taser-linked have also involved other, much more serious aggravating factors such as knife or gunshot wounds or drugs - as this timeline indicates -

    Timeline of Taser controversies in the UK - The Guardian https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/aug/16/timeline-of-taser-controversies-in-the-uk#utm_sguid=172014,b8e295e0-439f-7647-e3ec-61613cc8e4de

    Spitguards / Spithoods

    Policewoman who died after being spat on http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/world-news/policewoman-dies-tuberculosis-after-thug-8537924
    Spit hoods – a question of transparency via The Police Foundation. http://www.police-foundation.org.uk/news/216/187/Spit-hoods-a-question-of-transparency/d,Blog-main
    "Spitting Feathers" blog by policecommander on use of spit hoods https://policecommander.wordpress.com/2016/09/07/spitting-feathers/

    Tasers

    Lack of Consistency with Taser / BWV use - http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-37266291
    British Transport Police Federation call for Tasers http://www.btpolfed.org.uk/pubs/160902.htm?utm_content=bufferc6c9c&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter.com&utm_campaign=buffer
    First person account of Taser used to save life by office armed with rifle and pistol - Taser – a tool of pacifists | Sgt Harry Tangye https://dcarvsgt.wordpress.com/2016/04/14/taser-a-tool-of-pacifists/
    Threat of taser makes teenager drop weapon http://www.standard.co.uk/news/crime/teenager-armed-with-claw-hammer-in-standoff-with-police-on-busy-tube-train-a3328336.html
    North Wales Police Federation Sergeants' representative call for Tasers www.nwpolfed.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/NWales-YourVoice-SEPT2016.pdf " In light of increased terrorism threats, increasing crime figures, decreasing police officer numbers, increasing assaults on officers, the policing challenge is greater than ever and it is only right and proper that our brave men and women, who put themselves in harm’s way, are equipped to do the job, just as the public want and expect."
    Taser-linked death in Australia http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-08-26/robert-curti-police-spent-millions-defending-officers-over-taser/7788018?pfmredir=sm
    Amnesty International Publications (2008): “Less than lethal”? List of deaths following use of stun weapons in US law enforcement 3 June 2001 to 31 August 2008. http://www.amnestyinternational.be/IMG/pdf/List_of_deaths_Taser.pdf

     
  19. Kevin Morrell Staff WBS
    #19 16:06, Thu 15 Sep 2016 (edited 17:08, Thu 15 Sep 2016)
    What things make you more or less confident in the police?

    Deaths in Custody

    An ongoing challenge for relations between the police and public, particularly minority communities is the issue of deaths in custody. This is a feature of policing in several jurisdictions most notably the U.S.  In the UK, despite several hundred deaths since 1988 while people are being detained by the state there have not been any convictions of police officers although one civilian officer was sentenced to 6 months and despite there being nine unlawful killing verdicts from juries at inquests, and one from a jury at a public inquiry. This is part of the impetus behind the Black Lives Matter movement. The IPCC has recommended that 13 officers should be prosecuted and also found failings in the care of vulnerable prisoners but also suggests that juries are unwilling to convict police officers.

    From a Guardian article in 2010

    "Out of the total of 333 deaths, 87 people had been restrained, most commonly being physically held down by officers. In 16 of those cases, restraint was linked directly to the death, and four were classed as "positional asphyxia".

    The majority were from natural causes, with nearly three-quarters relating to drug or alcohol abuse. The report questioned whether those arrested for being very inebriated should be taken to alternative facilities, such as the "drunk tanks" introduced in Scotland. It called on the Home Office and Department of Health to pilot facilities with medical care to replace police cells."

    https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2010/dec/03/deaths-police-custody-officers-convicted?CMP=Share_AndroidApp_Copy_to_clipboard

    From a Guardian article in 2015

    "It [report by the Institute of Race Relations] concludes: “Despite narrative verdicts warning of dangerous procedures and the proliferation of guidelines, lessons are not being learnt: people die in similar ways year on year.”

    If anything, it says, the situation is worsening, with the privatisation and subcontracting of custodial services making it harder to call agencies to account. Almost 1,000 people have died in police custody alone since 1990. The report says that some of the deaths in prison revealed a “lack of care and disregard for human life that is so blatant that it often appears as deliberate acts and omissions by individuals and institutions”."

    https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2015/mar/21/500-black-asian-deaths-custody-no-prosecutions

    A statistical breakdown (including car puruits and road traffic accidents) from the organization INQUEST who use the term "deaths in custody as a shorthand to refer to all deaths in state detention including in prisons, secure training centres, in police custody, immigration detention centres and psychiatric detention and those deaths involving contact with state agents."

    http://www.inquest.org.uk/statistics/deaths-in-police-custody

    Publications from this project arguing against the privatization of police services:

    The Conversation article January 6th, 2016 https://theconversation.com/stop-in-the-name-of-profit-five-reasons-why-hiring-private-police-is-a-bad-idea-52638

    The Barrister article November 23rd, 2015 http://www.barristermagazine.com/six-reasons-to-fear-the-creeping-privatisation-of-policing/

     
  20. Kevin Morrell Staff WBS
    #20 14:13, Thu 22 Sep 2016 (edited 14:13, Thu 22 Sep 2016)
    What things make you more or less confident in the police?

    The HMIC recently published a report on public attitudes in policing. It is available in full on the following link: https://www.justiceinspectorates.gov.uk/hmic/wp-content/uploads/HMIC-public-views-of-police.pdf.

    A critical review on the report and methods used - written by Kevin Morrell and Emma Williams - is available on: https://policinginsight.com/analysis/can-confident-thoughts-hmic-report-public-views-policing-england-wales/

     

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