Policing - new material (48)
01 September 1999
Breaking and entering, David Bowen. Police Review 23.7.99, p26-27. Short piece on a Greater Manchester police training policy on "forcing and entering premises safely and quickly". The article concludes that "the policy has quickly resulted in officers becoming much more confident in entering premises..."
Policing with contempt: the degrading of truth and the denial of Justice in the Aftermath of the Hillsborough Disaster, Phil Scraton. Journal of Law and Society Vol 26 no 3 (September) pp273-297. Considers the formal legal processes and their outcomes regarding the long-term aftermath of the Hillsborough disaster in the context of the reconstitution and registration of the "truth" in official discourse. It raises fundamental questions about the legal and political accountability of the police and looks forward to the acknowledgement of "truth" and reconciliation of injustices through a positive rights agenda.
Deaths in police custody: reducing the risks. Police Complaints Authority (PCA) 1999, pp18. The PCA have been severely criticised over their investigations of 250 deaths in police custody since 1993. A measure of their problem is the fact that this report came out of a PCA organised conference held in London in October 1998; it was picketed by angry families of those killed in custody after they were excluded from the meeting on the grounds that they would be "too emotional".
After the Stephen Lawrence report, Eugene McLaughlin & Karim Murji. Critical Social Policy Vol 19 no 3 (August) 1999, pp317-385. This article, written in the aftermath of the Stephen Lawrence inquiry, highlights the "uneven nature" of the report. It covers reactions from the press and the police and argues that "the critical challenge will be to construct an agenda for pushing forward key recommendations." Proposals for how to overcome "the limitations of official discourses on police reform" are presented in the conclusion.
The Lawrence inquiry and incompetence, corruption, and institutional racism, Lee Bridges. Journal of Law and Society Vol 26 no 3, pp298-322. A critical analysis of the Macpherson Report, particularly its approach to "institutional racism" and the down-playing of the need for a thorough re-examination of policing policies and priorities at a strategic level. It raises concerns over the potential ineffectiveness of key recommendations (stop-and-search and policing racist crime), doubting the Government's commitment to "antiracism" given its decision to further restrict rights of defendants and the ability of black people to defend themselves against police racism via the criminal justice system.
Press Digest Three. National Campaign Against CS Spray August 1999. The National Campaign Against CS Spray was set up by the family and friends of Ibrahima Sey, who was unlawfully killed at Ilford police station after being restrained by police officers using CS gas. The Digest compiles information about the use and misuse of CS in order to promote a nationwide ban on its use. The third volume covers the period October 1998-August 1999. With the Department of Health's Committee on Toxicology report on the safety of CS ten months overdue the campaign would welcome press cuttings, reports and other documentation to make their coverage as comprehensive as possible. To obtain the digest (please send ú3.50 to cover costs) or report an incident contact: Kevin Blowe, National Campaign Against CS Spray, c/o NMP, Suit 4, 63 Broadway, Stratford, London E15 4BQ, Tel/Fax 0181 555 8151.
Parliamentary debates
City of London Demonstration Commons 21.6.99. cols. 777-785; Lords 21.6.99. cols. 690-700
Police Service Lords 21.6.99. cols. 722-737
Metropolitan Police Commons 22.6.99. cols. 1089-1108
Rural Policing Commons 23.6.99. cols. 1137-1142
Libya Commons 7.7.99. cols. 1033-1043; Lords 7.7.99. cols. 903-913 Police Funding Commons 7.7.99. cols. 966-988
Policing (London) Commons 16.7.99. cols. 691-761