|
|
 |
| |
Is the level of crime just a question of definition?
• AT a recent gathering of local police and community groups, Westminster’s Borough Commander Steve Allen proudly announced that crime in Westminster had gone down over the past year.
Everyone applauded, but afterwards some of us asked one another just how this could be.
Much depends on how crime is defined, especially these days when we hear a great deal about other issues such as anti-social behaviour, nuisance behaviour, harassment, incidents and so forth, with the word crime not even mentioned. What one person regards as a crime another might consider harmless fun.
An example is so-called car crime. This is usually interpreted as meaning theft of or from a vehicle rather than the antics of some motorists and motorcyclists.
Often car crime is not perceived either by the police or by criminal justice systems as ‘real’ crime, but rather as behaviour that is merely accidental and even unavoidable.
It is common knowledge that both the police and the road traffic penalty enforcement systems deal with only a small proportion of all the traffic offences.
A culture of disregard for disqualification is also well known. Many dangerous drivers and riders realise that the likelihood of them being caught is very small.
Indeed, although the road casualty statistics for last year are not yet available, according to Transport for London, Westminster is the worst borough in London for hit-and-run crimes.
What’s more, these are on the increase. In 2005 there were 200 such collisions and by the following year they had shot up to 222.
There were 1,762 road casualties in Westminster in 2005, 12 of whom died, including seven pedestrians.
In 2006, the figures went up to 1,841 of whom 13 died, nine of them pedestrians. We await with interest the statistics for 2007.
Who said crime in Westminster is decreasing?
Antony Porter,
Ashmore Road, W9
|
 |
|
| |
| Your comments: |
| |
| |
| |
|
|
|
