Category Archives: Crime

Protecting Children

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Sky News featured a story over the weekend on the alarming rise of gang-related child abduction in India, one of the world’s so-called emerging nations and one of the fastest growing economies.  Evidently the abduction of young Indian children has reached epidemic proportions with an estimated one child being taken every eight minutes. That works out at just under two hundred a day or a staggering fourteen hundred a week. Investigations have revealed that, once enslaved, the children are used as either cheap labour in one of the country’s thriving factories or as prostitutes.

The Indian government, not surprisingly, are extremely concerned by the situation and questions are being asked as to whether or not the police are doing all that they can to safeguard the welfare of their children. A national register has been set up with the idea of posting on it a photograph of every child in the country to assist in tracing anyone unfortunate enough to be abducted. It seems a good idea but how effective will it be in a country of over one billion people and with wide scale poverty among the lower classes, many of whom undoubtedly slip under the State’s radar?
Abuse of children has always seemed to me to be the worst type of human abuse since children are naturally so vulnerable, trusting, innocent and weak. Any State that cannot look after its most vulnerable members can barely refer to itself as civilised and I’m not singling out India here. Closer to home we have been faced with a barrage of tales concerning the late Sir Jimmy Savile and whilst, initially, there may have been doubt at the allegations made against him one year after his death their sheer volume can only lead one to the conclusion that here was a man of at least questionable behaviour but more likely, as many have claimed, a paedophile. I just hope that the investigation, and there will undoubtedly be a national enquiry, is calm and well balanced, concerning itself only with truth and fact and does not degenerate into a witch hunt.
In the meantime, all any of us can do is to educate and alert our children to the dangers of the world, to warn them against the wiles of some adults, not just strangers, and to encourage in them the use of common sense. We mustn’t overdo it though because there is still a lot of good in the world and a sizeable majority of people are undoubtedly thoughtful, decent and kind. It would not be right to bring up a new generation of untrusting, hard-faced, bitter, cynics. No, that’ll come soon enough with middle-age!
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The Death Penalty and Arming the Police

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The brutal killing of two unarmed police officers near Manchester earlier this week was as sickening a crime as could be imagined. The fact that the two officers were young women somehow seems to make it worse. There will now be calls for two things, one for the death penalty to be brought back and two for police officers to be armed.

It’s difficult not to want retribution for this kind of crime and yes, like most of us, I would like cold blooded murderers to be put out of their misery. The reality however is that capital punishment is flawed since mistakes can be made and to execute just one innocent person, in my view, invalidates the whole system. What we need is a proper deterrent since clearly the present system isn’t working.
 A convicted murderer should usually, depending on the circumstances of each case, be sentenced to life imprisonment. That should mean life, without pardon, without parole and until the convicted criminal breathes his or her last breath. Further, prison, whilst not being a place of torture should not be a pleasant experience either and many of the luxuries that prisoners receive in these liberal times – colour television, use of telephones etc should be denied them. Criminals should be terrified of going to prison and if they were then maybe they would, in some cases at least, reconsider their evil ways.
We should also look at the reasons for crime and clearly the commission of many crimes is motivated by or linked to drug use. The use of drugs is a worldwide epidemic. In some countries, such as Singapore and Malaysia for example, a  conviction for dealing in drugs carries a death sentence. Convicted drug dealers in this country should face, and be given, life sentences as though they were convicted murderers, which actually is what most of them are when you consider the number of people dying from drug abuse.
As far as arming the police is concerned, it’s difficult in this modern age not to argue in favour of it. It will be a sad day when armed police are seen walking down the local high street  but the days of the friendly old red-faced Bobby walking the beat, chatting with the locals have gone. Times have changed and we must change with those times. Arming the police is inevitable and with exhaustive and comprehensive screening and training plus solid leadership from government and the higher echelons of the police hierarchy it has to be a move for the better. If we don’t do anything then the slaying of police officers will sadly become a routine occurrence.

A Strong America

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The recent attacks on American Embassies in Libya and Yemen are a worrying development in the continuing struggle against Islamic Extremism. Whether the attacks were as a result of the recent release of a low-budget film allegedly mocking the prophet Mohammed or a protest against American foreign policy nobody can say for sure but if the attacks continue to spread then the whole of the Western World has a problem.

Embassies, situated as they are in foreign lands,  are regarded by international law as sovereign territory and any attack on that territory is regarded as an attack on the Embassy’s country itself and thus technically an act of war. It is the duty of country in which the embassy is situated, the host country, to protect the embassy from acts of violence by its own people and so in this respect the governments of Libya and Yemen, such as they are, have failed in that duty.
In the USA, argument now rages between Republicans and Democrats as to whether or not the Democrat President Obama (and therefore America as a nation) is perceived as weak, giving encouragement to Islamic extremists to carry out their atrocities. If that is the case then we should all be greatly concerned.
There are those, of course,  who are fearful of America and fearful of any American misuse of power, particularly under a Republican Government (which may well come to power later this year). Be that as it may, there is no doubt whatsoever that in these increasingly dangerous times the world needs a strong America, with a strong president to protect us all from those who would destroy us.

Praise for Burglars

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There are many reasons why a guilty defendant may receive a light sentence. It could be that he is a man of previous good character who uncharacteristically fell foul of the law, it could be due to the skill, eloquence and persuasive argument of his lawyer or occasionally it could be that the judge in his case was completely bonkers. Such a case arose in Cleveland last week.

Whilst sentencing convicted burglar and serial offender, Richard Rochford,  His Honour Judge Peter Bowers stated that “It takes a huge amount of courage, as far as I can see, to burgle someone’s home. I wouldn’t have the nerve”. He then declined to impose upon Rochford the prison sentence his behaviour merited (and which any rational judge would have ordered) and instead gave the former jailbird a community service order.

Of course, there has been uproar following this ludricous pronouncement and it is to be hoped that when His Honour is tracked down on the Planet Zog, or wherever it is he resides, his superiors ensure that he no longer graces the Bench with his presence.

It’s sometimes difficult not to despair of our legal system. Our demoralised and poorly led police force, suffocating under the weight of unnecessary bureaucracy and form filling, often struggle to bring criminals to justice and even when they do, they find themselves hampered by a system that often favours the criminal over the victim. They find their good work torn to pieces by smart-alec defence lawyers and even if they manage to obtain a conviction they watch defendants walk away relatively free, openly  laughing at the weakness of the courts.

This country seems to be a defendant’s paradise, unless, of course,  you happen to be a motorist.

Dogs and their Owners

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In today’s news was a report that the owner of two out of control dogs was jailed for 12 months after the dogs savaged ten people in an “horrific and nightmarish” street attack. The owner of the two Staffordshire Bull Terrier crosses, an unemployed father of one aged 22 years (says it all really), had a string of previous convictions for various offences and the dogs had already attacked another person several weeks earlier as they “marauded around the area” of St Leonards on Sea, Sussex.

It’s good that such an objectionable example of our underclass has been jailed and good too that the Government has recently put in place stronger punishments for crimes committed by owners of dangerous dogs though in my view it is nearly always the fault of the owner rather than the dog – Staffordshire Bull Terriers, if well trained and looked after, are no more dangerous than most domestic dogs. However, the Government has not, in my opinion, gone far enough and has missed an obvious opportunity to limit this kind of incident.
Years ago dog owners were required to have licences to own their pets. The licence cost a nominal amount and had the effect of registering ownership and creating some sort of responsibility for dog ownership. Now, I’m not normally one to advocate an increase in bureaucracy but dog licensing is an exception and should be brought back immediately. A fee of say £50 (with certain exemptions for the elderly and disabled for example) would encourage responsible dog  ownership and would also act as a deterrent to some of the more undesirable members of society.

Bungling Police?

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In a civilised society all responsible and law abiding citizens have a right to expect the full support and protection of the State. It’s an unspoken social contract; we obey the law and in return we receive that protection. The State’s agent of protection is its police force and the prime function of any police force is to protect and to serve its citizens. We should all support and respect the police, but what if the police force proves to be less than competent or ineffective?

Over recent years there have been some disturbing examples of unacceptable policing in this country. A few years back we had the dreadful killing of an innocent Brazilian tourist by armed police officers on the London Underground. Last summer police failed to respond adequately, or in time, to street riots  in some parts of the capital where innocent citizens were attacked and their property destroyed.  A couple of months ago a coach was stopped by police on a motorway which was then closed for several hours and the passengers made to disembark individually with their hands in the air. They were then searched Guantanamo Bay style until the police found – an electronic cigarette. The list of bungling goes on.
Last week,  police searched a house three times in the hunt for tragic 12 year old, Tia Sharp, only to find her dead body on the fourth attempt. These events are quite alarming and we are entitled to ask whether or not our police are competent or to use a modern expression “fit for purpose”.
It seems to me that our police are poorly led, stifled by political correctness and are overwhelmed by unnecessary bureaucracy and form filling.  It’s a wonder that anybody would want to join the police at all, especially when, in addition, they lack the support of large sections of society and even when criminals are correctly apprehended they are dealt with far too leniently by our liberal leaning courts. That, of course, is another story.
I think our police force requires an urgent overhaul and certainly need some more quality at the top. If this sounds harsh just think of the senior policemen and women who appear on our television screens every time a serious crime is publicised.  Do they strike you as intelligent, articulate, sharp and incisive? Some, maybe but mostly not. Many appear to be out of their depth, probably over-promoted and not up to the intellectual level of some of the criminals they are trying to apprehend.
The time has come, I think, to model the police on our armed forces and to have an officer class of intelligent, well educated and highly trained young men and women. An elite able to face up to the demands of an increasingly complicated and sophisticated world.
It  must be hard being a policeman at the best of times, with long unsociable hours, time away from families and loved ones and regular risks of personal danger. The police need and deserve our support and the country needs a strong effective police force. Without one the road to anarchy lies clearly ahead.

Dealing With The Underclass

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Last week the country and national press were so excited by the coming of the Olympic Games that Friday’s passing of a life sentence, by Manchester Crown Court,  on the murderer of Indian student, Anuj Bidve, slipped virtually unnoticed underneath the radar.

On Boxing Day last year a young Salford criminal, Kiaran Stapleton aged 21, approached his innocent 23 year old victim on the street and after asking him the time shot him in the head seemingly just for the fun of it. No motive was established and no remorse was shown by Stapleton either before, during or after the trial. On the contrary, he seemed to relish his new found notoriety and spent the whole trial laughing and smirking.
Of course, it’s very easy to become emotional following the commission of such a despicable crime and the taking of an innocent life so full of promise by a killer from the complete opposite end of the social scale. There will be further calls for capital punishment and whilst I, as a lawyer, would find it hard to vote in favour of the death sentence I have to admit that it would be difficult to find a better advertisement for it than Stapleton.
We have a serious problem in this country with a large criminal underclass who live on State handouts and generally behave in such a manner that any decent citizen would find repugnant. Successive governments have huffed and puffed and talked about making our streets safe but the sad fact is that these crimes continue to mount as the police are withdrawn from the streets and their numbers diminished in the midst of wholesale Government spending cuts.
It’s no use the Prime Minister talking about his “Big Society” and despairing at the breakdown of the family unit and the consistent failings of State education. Something has to be done and done quickly. We don’t need yet another public enquiry or an investigation by select committee but a clear recognition of the problem. Significant parts of our country, particularly the inner cities, are virtually lawless and unless more police are put on the beat and unless our courts deal firmly with convicted criminals our problems will worsen and events like that on Boxing Day 2011 will sadly become commonplace.

Froth and Dregs

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Newspaper revelations of the banking scandal have clearly opened a can of worms (an apposite analogy if ever there was one) exposing the murky world of high finance for all to see. For many years successive governments  have ignored the fact that many of our top (as in earnings – nothing else) bankers, financiers and other assorted rapacious capitalists were abusing the system to feather their nests. Of course, many of these parasites ostentatiously made financial donations to our major political parties and, mindful of the doctrine “never bite the hand that feeds”, our democratically elected rulers turned a blind eye to their misdemeanours.

In times of recession however the spotlight tends to shine a little brighter and the light reveals all sorts of grubby little creatures lurking in hitherto unseen crevices. This is what is happening now and the sense of outrage felt by the vast majority of decent British people is palpable. There must be no hiding place for the guilty and it is surely only a matter of time before prison sentences are handed out as frequently as bankers’ bonuses.

At the other end of the spectrum the Government is, at long last, addressing the rampant abuses of our welfare system and measures are being put in place to end many of them. For many people in this country the State has become a limitless source of cash to fund lifestyles based purely on handouts. In some families there has been no history of employment for several generations yet they demand as of right things that most of us strive hard to acquire through honest hard work. For the workers in society there is no such thing as a free lunch but unfortunately they are the ones picking up the tab for those dining for free.

As a nation we are haemorrhaging money at both ends and the decent, hardworking, taxpaying majority in the middle of our society are the ones  keeping us going, preventing the country (for the time being) from going under. Their reward, as announced earlier this week, is to face further means testing in later life when they require care home treatment. What a reward for their honesty, frugality and responsibility.

It brought to mind the quotation of the 18th century French philosopher Voltaire about the British  – “They are like their own beer, froth at the top, dregs at the bottom, the middle excellent”. Three centuries on it seems his assessment is as accurate as ever.

Police Cuts

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If you were asked whether or not you were happy with the service provided by our national police force and whether or not you felt there were enough policemen on the beat the chances are that you would answer both questions in the negative. We know how difficult it is to obtain a quick and effective  response  when we report a crime and, as far as policemen on the beat are concerned, when did you last see a bobby walking down your local high street? And I mean a proper one, not one of those lightly-trained-with-limited-powers-and-usually-slightly-overweight police community support officers.

So I imagine you were somewhat surprised and disappointed this week to read of plans to get rid of 6,000 front line police officers and close down hundreds of police stations over the next three years.  On top of this a further 25,000 or so non-front line officers and civilian support staff will also be axed in an effort to save £2.4 billion on the police budget by 2015. When asked to explain these cuts a Government spokesmen sought to reassure us that the overall quality of policing would remain and we would be as safe as we ever were. Putting aside the question as to whether or not you felt safe in the first place it’s tempting to ask why all those policemen and support staff are currently in employment if their loss will make no overall difference to the quality of policing.

The answer is that there are too many bureaucrats in the Police (as there are in the NHS, Education, Defence and virtually any other Government ministry and department you may wish to name) and anything that leads to less bureaucracy and form filling has to be a good thing. However, in a country where crime is still on the increase and where we remain at risk from the threat of worldwide terrorism, shouldn’t we actually be increasing the number of police on the front line?

The Unacceptable Face of Capitalism

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I’m sure that most of us watching the continuing cycle of banking scandals do so with a combined sense of bemusement and disgust. The collapse of The Northern Rock Bank during the sub-prime lending crisis of 2007, heralded the start of that cycle and, with it, the beginning of the worst recession in living memory.

It is a recession caused by the greed of financial institutions eager to make fortunes by lending money and  granting mortgages, usually at exorbitant rates, to people totally ill-equipped to repay them. The results of their greed were that borrowers, unable to repay their loans, had their homes repossessed and the ultimate lenders were left out of pocket, causing a spiral of debt.

When the continuing crisis caused the collapse of the Royal Bank of Scotland the bank was rescued and bailed out by Government (and therefore taxpayers’) money. In spite of this, leading City bankers have continued to award themselves huge personal bonuses when, all around them, people and businesses not so fortunate, and not so immoral, have gone to the wall. Now we learn that Barclays and other banks have defrauded us further by manipulating and fixing the inter-bank interest rate (the Libor rate) for their own benefit.

To refer to their actions as immoral is actually euphemistic. The correct word is criminal and if the behaviour of bankers, traders and other “masters of the universe” as they arrogantly refer to themselves is shown to fall foul of the law (and the fact that the FBI are investigating Barclays traders in the USA seems to indicate that this is indeed the case) those responsible should be investigated and prosecuted without delay. It is our money that has been misappropriated and, like common thieves, the perpetrators should be held to account by the courts.