Met Police launches Stop and Search Charter today

The Metropolitan Police today launched its Stop and Search Charter in response to growing concerns about knife crime. With the rise in knife crime and resultant loss of young lives the police had been placed in the invidious position with, on the one hand the public demanding that action be taken, yet on the other when taking the most obvious step of stop and search come under some justifiable criticism for being overzealous and falling into the trap of racially stereotyping suspects. Julian Hayes, criminal lawyer at Berris Law LLP, shared his thoughts on the Charter, stating that “The Charter is welcome to provide the police and communities with a form of working ‘agreement’ as to how to effectively manage a valuable crime prevention tool but to ensure that the public can have confidence in its integrity and efficacy.” Hayes emphasised the need for training, saying “This will require the police to train and in some cases re-train officers to ensure it is approached with courtesy and respect.”

Despite the importance of the Charter, Hayes pointed out that this is merely “one small cog in knife crime prevention,” suggesting that education plays a far more significant role in addressing the root causes of youth violence. “The only truly effective method of crime prevention is education and for that resources need to be put into youth centres and schools,” he concluded. While the Stop and Search Charter may be a step forward in policing, it remains clear that a broader approach, focusing on education and youth services, is necessary to tackle the knife crime epidemic.