Operational policing

FEATURE: A recent Independent Office for Police Conduct report made a raft of recommendations based on a review of 101 cases of the police use of Taser over a five-year period; but the National Police Chiefs’ Council and the Police Federation have both criticised the report for being ‘vague’, ‘statistically insignificant’ and failing to engage with policing, as Policing Insight Editor Keith Potter reports.

OPINION: Operations by police and security teams to clear homeless encampments around the city of Toronto have been defended as an attempt to ensure the safety of occupants and the general public; however, Professor Joe Hermer of the University of Toronto argues that not only is this untrue, but it also represents a betrayal by police and the mayor, who had previously pledged to listen to and build a relationship with the city’s most marginalised and vulnerable people.

opinion: Promoting a single equality cause as overtly as this week's pictures of the LGBT rainbow emblem on police liveried vehicles could inadvertently discriminate against other protected groups, argues Evan Morris, Vice Chairman of the National Association of Police Fire and Crime Panels

FEATURE: The terrorist attacks in Barcelona and Cambrils four years ago this month left 14 people dead and more than 130 injured; Policing Insight’s Andrew Staniforth looks at the National Counter-Terrorism Strategy launched by the Spanish Government since those attacks, as well as the continuing threat and risk posed to Spain by both violent jihadist terrorism and returning foreign terrorist fighters.

FEATURE: New Zealand Police have worked with Australia’s Griffith University to take a critical look at their command and control processes, and improve understanding of good leadership and effective management; speaking at the Australia and New Zealand Society of Evidence-Based Policing (ANZSEBP) Conference, Assistant Commissioner Tusha Penny and Professor Justin Ready outlined the findings of their work, and plans to share best practice and lessons learned across the organisation.

OPINION: The recent tragic shootings in Plymouth, and the concerns over how gunman Jake Davison came to be in possession of a licensed shotgun, have prompted calls for a more thorough vetting of applicants and licence holders in the UK, including their online activity; but former Chief Constable Stuart Hyde believes we need more than just social media monitoring, and a move to a national licensing regime may be the way forward.

ADVERTISEMENT FEATURE: With the new MSc in Covert Investigation and Specialist Intelligence, Liverpool John Moores University has designed an innovative postgraduate programme that will give students a solid understanding of the many challenges and opportunities facing the intelligence and covert investigative community today.

FEATURE: While lockdown led to a reduction in many crimes, speeding motorists abusing the empty roads led to an increased demand for driver retraining schemes; crisis communication consultant Amanda Coleman spoke to Ruth Purdie, Chief Executive Officer of UK Road Offender Education (UKROEd), about working with forces during the pandemic, the move to online retraining courses, and how the service will be delivered moving forwards.

FEATURE: Online gaming platforms and forums have offered violent extremists new routes to recruit and radicalise young people, but law enforcement practitioners largely admit to lacking the skills and knowledge to tackle the problem; Policing Insight’s Andy Staniforth reports on a new funding initiative encouraging police, public authorities, the private sector and academia to work together to improve knowledge on the use of online gaming culture and structure by extremists.

FEATURE: The volume and accessibility of online child sexual abuse material (CSAM) has increased considerably in recent years, prompting concerns from police, legislators and the public; ahead of next week’s Australia and New Zealand Society of Evidence-Based Policing Conference, Dr Rick Brown, Deputy Director of the Australian Institute of Criminology, outlines some of the key research and initiatives already underway to reduce CSAM in the future.

Insight: An offender desistance programme centred on taking a public health approach to policing suggests that it can reduce the risk of offending by 30% over a significant follow-up period which could have far-reaching benefits for how policing resources are used. Working with offenders rather than simply processing them was a key driver for the project, as Detective Superintendent Kevin Weir and Durham PCC's Policy and Commissioning Officer Stephanie Kilili report.

ANALYSIS: The transition of forensic science provision in England and Wales from the public to private sector has led to fears over the ability of commercial markets to influence forensic analysis and interpretation; in the second of two articles, Dr Karen Richmond of the University of Copenhagen highlights further concerns around the separation of tasks and the use of Streamlined Forensic Reports, as well as a potential path to progress for the forensic sector through the growth of digital.

ANALYSIS: Levels of violent crime across America saw an unprecedented increase in 2020, and remain worryingly high in 2021; in this last in a series of essays from the Violence Reduction Project, former Newark Police officer Prof Jon Shane of John Jay College of Criminal Justice outlines the thinking behind situational crime prevention, and how addressing the physical and social environment can help to reduce crime, aggression, and disorder.

ANALYSIS: The transition of forensic science provision in England and Wales from the public to private sector has led to fears over the ability of commercial markets to influence – and even distort – forensic analysis and interpretation, according to a new study; in the first of two articles, Dr Karen Richmond of the University of Copenhagen explains the background to the research, and highlights some of the key concerns of scientists including the loss of contextual information, case fragmentation, and the diminishing role of forensic practitioners.

FEATURE: Police call handling hit the headlines in the UK again this month, as chiefs warned daily 999 calls post-lockdown are at levels usually seen on New Year’s Eve, while the Prime Minister unveiled plans for league tables for 999 and 101 call answering times; growing demand, increasing complexity and public channel choice were key issues covered by CoPaCC’s Future Police Contact Management report (published earlier this year in partnership with Salesforce), with the following article from the report highlighting some of the main challenges.

OPINION: Levels of violent crime across America saw an unprecedented increase in 2020, and remain worryingly high in 2021; in this latest essay from the Violence Reduction Project, former NYPD Detective Sergeant Joseph Giacalone, now an Adjunct Professor at the City University of New York, explains why solving cold cases could build community bridges, take more offenders off the street, and play a crucial part in reducing levels of violence.

FEATURE: The latest Home Office figures for the police use of terrorism-related powers show that arrests are at their lowest level since 2011, due largely to the overall reduction in crime during the pandemic; but counter-terror police have repeated concerns over the “perfect storm” for online radicalisation of children and vulnerable people that has seen terror-related arrests of under-18s rise, as Policing Insight’s Sean Howe reports.

ANALYSIS: Levels of violent crime across America saw an unprecedented increase in 2020, and remain worryingly high in 2021; in this latest essay from the Violence Reduction Project, Professor Joel Caplan of Rutgers University School of Criminal Justice explains how using a data-informed approach to crime prevention which engages local communities can offer an effective alternative to focusing solely on law enforcement.

ANALYSIS: The use of cognitive interviewing techniques to get the best outcomes from witness interviews has advanced significantly in recent years, but common errors and misconceptions continue to arise; ahead of this month’s Rapid-Fire Conference on Investigative Interviewing supported by Policing Insight, Becky Milne, Professor of Forensic Psychology, sets out her Top 10 tips for successfully carrying out cognitive interviews with witnesses.

ANALYSIS: Sixteen years ago today, four suicide bombers carrying rucksacks packed with explosives attacked central London, killing 52 people and injuring hundreds more; Policing Insight’s Andrew Staniforth looks at what happened in the lead up to the worst single terrorist atrocity on British soil, and how those events have continued to have an impact on counter-terrorism and UK policing through to the current day.

ANALYSIS: Levels of violent crime across America saw an unprecedented increase in 2020, and remain worryingly high in 2021; in this latest essay from the Violence Reduction Project, Professors Richard Rosenfeld and David Klinger of the University of Missouri, St. Louis outline how tackling three key issues – subduing the pandemic, redoubling smart policing tactics and implementing police reform – could provide a three-pronged strategy for reducing violent crime.

ANALYSIS: A number of forces across the UK have introduced embedded mental health professionals to improve and support the police response to those in crisis, and perceptions of such initiatives have been positive; now a new study by the N8 Policing Research Partnership has formally evaluated the West Yorkshire Police project, with impressive results, as Policing Insight Editor Keith Potter reports.

ANALYSIS: Interviewing techniques used in the UK by law enforcement and the security services have improved considerably over the last two decades, but leading expert Prof Laurence Alison believes some simple errors and areas of confusion still remain; here, ahead of this month’s Rapid-Fire Conference on Investigative Interviewing, he sets out 10 top tips for interviewing and building a rapport with interviewees.

OPINION: The recent inquest into the Fishmonger’s Hall terror attack highlighted missed opportunities into the investigation of terrorist Usman Khan, and prompted criticism of the police and security services for their failure to share information more effectively; Policing Insight’s Andrew Staniforth believes that, in the light of this inquest and other previous incidents, it’s now time to consider if the present UK counter-terrorism architecture is fit for purpose.