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All knife carriers should be prosecuted, warns Met chief
Justin Davenport, Crime Correspondent11.10.07
Anyone caught carrying a knife in London should be put in court and face the risk of being jailed, Britain's most senior police officer said today.
Sir Ian Blair said it was "totally unacceptable" that half of those caught in possession of knives in the capital in the past year had been let off with a caution.
In an urgent plea the Metropolitan Police Commissioner said: "We have to stop the growing incidence of weapons being carried on our streets."
Sir Ian spoke out three days after the "dreadful" knife murder of 17-year-old Rizwan Darbar, the 15th teenager to be stabbed to death in London so far this year.
In a speech to a criminal justice conference in London he said in the past year 893 people - including 228 children - had been let off with a caution after being caught with a knife in the capital. He said he was holding talks with the Crown Prosecution Service to ensure that everyone caught in possession would be charged and go before a court where there would be the possibility of being sent to prison.
He said: "We already have extensive laws in relation to guns, although more will probably have to be done."
He said it should be for the courts and not the CPS, as at present, to decide what action should be taken against knife-carriers. "This does not necessarily mean prison but it does mean that everyone who carries a knife should appear in front of an appropriate court and understand the severity of what they have done."
He revealed the Met had agreed a deal with the CPS that would mean all adults caught in possession would now be charged but he admitted the situation with youth offending was more complex.
Reader views (4)
"Unexplained carrying of knives and other tools such as screwdrivers, chains etc. should all be treated with zero-tolerance. Amazing how long it takes the policymakers, police and criminal justice system to understand the nature of streetscum...only in Britain."
I really, really hope that was sarcasm...
Honest men need no laws. Dishonest men heed no laws.
- X, Chicago, USA
"Everyone who carries a knife should appear in front of an appropriate court," or no court and no problems if the knife is a legally carried one.
- Andy, Sheffield
Unexplained carrying of knives and other tools such as screwdrivers, chains etc. should all be treated with zero-tolerance. Amazing how long it takes the policymakers, police and criminal justice system to understand the nature of streetscum...only in Britain.
- Sam, London
I fix my girl-friend's problems with electrical goods like lamps and portable hi-fi. I take my toolkit, which includes a small Stanley knife for trimming wires, across London in a locked case.
I have a clean criminal record and wouldn't hurt a soul. But some highly paid cop and a few headline grabbers think that I deserve an automatic court appearance if I'm stopped and searched on an unlucky day.
Presumably to be considered guilty until proven innocent.
What a waste of valuable court and Police time. Whatever happened to a bit of discretion and common sense?
- Kevin Burke, Croydon, Surrey, UK
