Spates of stabbings have dominated the headlines in Lancashire in recent months, including the appalling knife attack of teenager Jessica Knight in a Chorley park.
The 14-year-old was horrifically stabbed up to 20 times and left for dead by another young person, sustaining life threatening wounds to her neck, abdominal area and chest.
June this year saw Lancashire creeping into the bottom of a Government league table as part of the Tackling Knives Action Programme, along with 10 ten other knife crime ‘hot-spots’ which included nearby Greater Manchester and Merseyside, as well as London.
Increased focus
£2 million pounds of resources has since been flooded into the 10 counties, in the hope that it will step up police efforts to rid the country of the thugs who commit these horrendous crimes.
The increased focus in tackling knife crime in Lancashire will include:
• Stepping up enforcement operations
• Targeting the most dangerous young people in each area
• Carrying out home visits and sending letters to parents if their children are known to carry weapons
• Working with A&E departments on information sharing
• Setting up or expanding youth forums to enable young people to have a say in local issues
• Clamping down on retailers who continue to sell knives to young people
“A national issue.”
But is knife crime really an issue here in Preston? Chief Superintendent Peter White, the Divisional Commander for Preston Police seems to think otherwise.
Speaking at a Face the People Safety Event, held by the Crime Disorder Reduction Partnership (CDRP) in November, he said: “This has become a national issue and there is obviously a very serious problem in some parts across the country, especially London. Are the problems in Preston of that scale and magnitude? No, not by any means.”
He added: “Actually it doesn’t have to be a knife that’s used in order for it to be classed as a knife crime in Home Office statistics. It could be a bottle or any sharp instrument. So this isn’t about hundreds of people walking around Preston with knives in their pockets.”
Out of context
County Councillor Vali Patel, agrees that the issue of knife crime in Lancashire has been blown out of context. He said: “The issue of knife crime is not as bad as people may think, but there are always going to be incidents of knife crime in certain parts of Preston.
“There are a lot of good things going on in Preston and sometimes people forget this. When you think about the level of knife crime in Preston and compare it with other parts of the country such as Manchester or London, I think we are quite low.”
He added: “In the context of bringing the level of knife crime down, I think it really is about educating people that knife crime is not the way forward in terms of keeping yourself defended. If you carry a knife then you’re going to kill someone or you’re going to use it.”
Increase in offences
However, statistics show that in the 6 months since the Tackling Knives Action Programme began, knife crime in Lancashire has actually seen an increase:
• In the period June to November 2007 there were 408 offences involving a knife in Lancashire.
• 2008 has seen an increase to 427 offences involving a knife, with 197 of them taking place since the Tackling Knives Action Programme began in June.
• 66 deaths in the county are believed to have involved knives over the past decade.
• 263 people have been found to be carrying an article with a blade in a public place.
“Knife wielding hoodies”
Putting the issue into perspective, Lancashire Constabulary is the eighth biggest force in the country and so statistically would be expected to have a higher level of knife crime.
Chief Executive of the Lancashire Police Authority, Miranda Carruthers-Watt, echoed this thought, saying: “Statistically, the biggest chance of a knife being used in an incident is domestically in Lancashire. Lancashire is right at the bottom of the league table, and you’d expect to see it in the top 10 because of its size.”
“The perception that there are gangs of ‘knife wielding hoodies’ wandering the streets needs to be tackled and we need to accept that this isn’t actually the case.”
Shocking knife attacks
However one Preston resident, Richard Salinger, 21, a sales assistant from Fulwood, disagrees and said, “I think there definitely is a problem with knife crime in Preston, although I think a certain local newspaper does tend to blow it out of proportion whenever there’s an incident. I think that Lancashire is in that league table for a reason not because of its size.”
Several cases of shocking knife attacks in Lancashire have made the front page in recent times. Like Jessica Knight, whose trial is currently in progress, David Cornall was attacked in a park. He was found dead in Ribbleton Park, after being stabbed by Liam Cromie.
Shaun Higgins, 23, was stabbed at a party whilst trying to calm a heated argument.
The map below outlines some of the latest and high-profile cases of knife crime to hit Preston in recent months (Zoom out to see more)
View Larger Map
60,000 people have now passed through knife arches which have been set up in town centres throughout Lancashire, with 1456 people so far stopped and searched, and 46 knives recovered.
It is illegal to carry any knife other than a folding pocket knife with a blade of less than 3” and carrying a blade can lead to up to 4 years in prison.
No comments:
Post a Comment