Time for a change / New Statesman, 17 July 2008
http://www.newstatesman.com/uk-politics/2008/07/young-prison-crime-life-health
David Blunkett
"One invaluable benefit from having agreed to do the programme has been the proximity to the young men involved and the renewed insight it has given me into youth culture. Many of the young men shared an interest in, and a cultural affinity with, a genre of music called "grime". Let me confess that to me the word meant only my mother's concern to scrub me clean at the age of four! But music, expression and the communication of anger and pent-up frustration go together with young men uncertain of their own masculinity and what the future holds. They came into the prison with a bravado that one would expect and ready for a laugh. They were, after all, going to be on television."
["Banged Up" is on channel Five on Monday 21 July at 9pm and concludes on Monday 28 July.]

Why tough talk on knife crime is not the answer / New Statesman, 17 July 2008
http://www.newstatesman.com/uk-politics/2008/07/knife-crime-prison-government
"The Home Secretary, Jacqui Smith, deserves praise for making the case for restorative justice, yet it was badly done. There is solid evidence that forcing people to confront the consequences of their crimes is more effective in cutting reoffending than purely punitive measures. A study this month from Cambridge University shows that, under restorative justice, reconviction rates fall by as much as 27 per cent. For those who believe that anything but prison is a soft option, however, the alternatives must be convincing. It was incompetent of the Home Office to wait so long before making it clear that those using knives would not be marched to hospital to visit the victims of their violence. Smith's clarification eventually came, but the damage was done."

[USA] Policing in Arab-American Communities After September 11 / Docuticker, 16 July 2008
http://www.docuticker.com/?p=21661
"Policing in Arab-American Communities After September 11 reports on a study examining how the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, affected relationships between law enforcement officers and residents in Arab-American neighborhoods. Four significant obstacles to improved relations between police and Arab-American communities were observed: mutual distrust between Arab-American communities and law enforcement, lack of cultural awareness among law enforcement officers, language barriers, and residents’ concerns about immigration status. The study reveals some promising practices for addressing these obstacles."
Report: PDF - http://www.ncjrs.gov/pdffiles1/nij/221706.pdf

Violent crime? Ask the experts / Guardian, 17 July 2008
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2008/jul/17/knifecrime.youngpeople?gusrc=rss&feed=politics
Dan Firth
"The problem is that politicians rarely seek people to listen and learn from young people about what they believe are the causes and potential solutions. If they did, they might find that the widening gap between rich and poor is not something that goes unnoticed by young people, particularly as super rich and increasingly poor live cheek by jowl – the haves and the have-nothings. "

Charles Clarke calls for more upfront fees for public services / Guardian, 17 July 2008
http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2008/jul/17/health.education?gusrc=rss&feed=uknews
Andrew Sparrow
"Taxpayers should be asked to pay directly for a wider range of public services, the former cabinet minister Charles Clarke suggested today. Clarke said that introducing more "user charges" would be "very politically controversial" but could help public services to improve."
Achieving the potential: PDF - http://image.guardian.co.uk/sys-files/Politics/documents/2008/07/17/CharlesClarkedoc.pdf

Crime safety advice issued to men / BBC, 17 July 2008
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/7510823.stm
"Crime safety charity the Suzy Lamplugh Trust has issued advice to men for the first time.
The guidance published on its website recommends men carry personal attack alarms and avoid wearing headphones or talking on mobile phones. The trust says men are twice as likely to suffer a violent attack than women. "

Smith offers police job to critic / BBC, 17 July 2008
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/7510849.stm
"Home Secretary Jacqui Smith has offered a job to the police officer who called for her resignation in a pay dispute. Former head of the Police Federation of England and Wales, Jan Berry, has been asked to be "bureaucracy champion" for the police, BBC News has learned.
A drive to cut red tape will feature in a Green Paper on policing."

Arrests in card network inquiry / BBC, 17 July 2008
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/7511390.stm
"Three men have been arrested following a BBC News investigation into one of the UK's largest illegal immigrant communities. They are being interviewed by the police and the UK Border Agency in connection with immigration offences and a forgery racket in west London."

Crime in England and Wales 2007/08 / Home Office, 17 July 2008
PDF - http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/pdfs08/hosb0708.pdf

Home Office: progress and the next steps / Cabinet Office, 17 July 2008
PDF - http://www.civilservice.gov.uk/documents/capability/pdf/ho_capability_review.pdf
Home Office Capability Review for 2008

Government review of 'Criminality Information' highlights problems in data sharing / Public Technology, 17 July 2008
http://www.publictechnology.net/modules.php?op=modload&name=News&file=article&sid=16662
"Sir Ian has recommended a package of measures to improve public protection, one of them being a Commission for Public Protection Information. The Commission will advise Ministers on the sharing of criminality information, as well as monitor the Government's progress. The Review has been sent to the Home Office's Home Secretary, who will lead the Government in implementing the Review."
http://www.police.homeoffice.gov.uk/operational-policing/review-%20criminality-information/

Immigration and inclusion in South Wales / Joseph Rowntree Foundation, 15 July 2008
http://www.jrf.org.uk/bookshop/details.asp?pubID=968
Terry Threadgold et al
"This research explores the impact of new migration on established communities in south-east Wales, in particular on the issues of community, integration and cohesion. It documents everyday life for both migrants and receiving communities. It explores the views and experiences of people from a range of ethnically diverse geographical areas, and different kinds of migrants."
http://www.jrf.org.uk/knowledge/findings/socialpolicy/2250.asp

The two sides to fighting crime / Spectator, 13 July 2008
http://www.spectator.co.uk/coffeehouse/834056/the-two-sides-to-fighting-crime.thtml
James Forsyth
"Tough on crime, tough on the causes of crime’ is one of the great political soundbites. Sadly, though, Tony Blair’s government never managed to put both parts of into action. Any long term solution to the current spate of violence is going to require us to do both simultaneously. I’d urge all Coffee Housers to read Minette Marrin in The Sunday Times, who deals with the later part, and Alasdair Palmer in The Sunday Telegraph, who addresses the former."

Workforce Modernisation and Future Resilience within the Police Service in England and Wales / Vathek Publishing, 10 July 2008
http://www.atypon-link.com/VAT/doi/abs/10.1350/pojo.2008.81.1.428
Police Journal 81(1): p.62-81
Barry Loveday
"
This article is based on a presentation given to the National Workforce Modernisation Programme Conference at Leeds in 2008. It argues that the issue of future police resilience should not stand in the way of modernisation and that while it may be used as a defence of the status quo there is growing evidence that reform can be expected to enhance police service delivery. It argues that the nature of police establishment growth has meant that there has been no attempt to match police numbers to police functions and that incremental growth, which has characterised police officer expansion, now means that it is difficult to defend current police numbers. This problem is made worse by the challenge presented by police abstraction rates, which appear to have increased in line with police establishment. It is also suggested that the increasing operational role of police staff is rarely taken into account by HMIC when assessing police performance even though many former police functions are now the responsibility of civilian personnel. As a result the threat to police resilience, used as a defence of current police establishment, may significantly exaggerate the challenge that workforce modernisation represents."
[Sub required]

How Criminal Organisations Work: Some Theoretical Perspectives / Vathek Publishing, 10 July 2008
http://www.atypon-link.com/VAT/doi/abs/10.1350/pojo.2008.81.1.400
Police Journal 81(1): p.46-61
Petter Gottschalk
"Organised crime has received increased attention in recent years and criminal organisations are involved in a wide range of crimes (Chawla & Pietschmann, 2005). To fight organised crime, there is a need to understand the organisations behind it and organisational theories may be helpful in this process. The purpose of this article is to apply well-known theories such as agency theory, alliance theory, network theory, resource-based theory and other organisational theories in order to shed light on criminal organisations."
[Sub required]

[USA] Officer Firearms Assaults at Domestic Violence Calls: A Descriptive Analysis / Vathek Publishing, 10 July 2008
http://www.atypon-link.com/VAT/doi/abs/10.1350/pojo.2008.81.1.407
Police Journal 81(1): p.25-45
Richard R. Johnson
"Domestic violence calls pose great dangers for the safety of police officers in the US as thousands of police officers are assaulted annually while handling domestic violence and domestic disturbance calls. Each year many officers are injured or killed in these assaults, the majority of fatal assaults involving firearms. The present study is a descriptive analysis of 143 incidents of a firearm assault against 225 victim police officers who were handling domestic calls at the time of their victimisation. The characteristics of these cases are described at the incident, assailant, and officer levels. Comparisons are made with the characteristics of fatal police officer assaults in the US in general, and policy recommendations are offered."
[Sub required]

Corruption in the Police: The Reality of the ‘Dark Side’ / Vathek Publishing, 10 July 2008
http://www.atypon-link.com/VAT/doi/abs/10.1350/pojo.2008.81.1.389
Police Journal, 81(1): p.3-24
Bryn Caless
"This article, the product of original research by the author into cases of police corruption facilitated by the ACPO Counter-Corruption Advisory Group from 1999 to 2000, analyses the nature of corruption in the police, arguing that although its incidence is very small, the effect of corruption in the police, both in terms of morale and in terms of the effect on cases before the courts, is substantial. The author, well experienced in the application of counter-corruption methods, proposes that the simplest and most direct inhibitors are often the most effective. Profiles of likely perpetrators are discussed, as are the characteristic experiences of policing which might tempt an officer into corrupt activity. This work blends applied research and academic analysis with professional knowledge."
[Sub required]

DPA hits 10-year milestone / IT Week, 16 July 2008
http://www.itweek.co.uk/itweek/news/2221720/dpa-hits-milestone
Dave Bailey & Gareth Morgan
"The Data Protection Act (DPA) 1998 today marks the ten-year anniversary, but increasingly data specialists are split on whether it still fit for purpose. With the issue of data protection today receiving unparalleled attention, some commentators are suggesting that the rapid advances in technology have outpaced the legislation."

Home Office unveils tagtastic immigrant control plans / The Register, 15 July 2008
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2008/07/15/immigration_bill_tag_plans/
John Lettice
"Detained illegal immigrants are the latest to fall victim to the Home Office's bizarre love affair with electronic tagging. The draft immigration and citizenship bill, published this week, puts forwards proposals for "large" but unspecified bail bonds along with tagging as an alternative to detention."

[USA] Court cheers warrantless snooping of e-mail / The Register, 16 July 2008
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2008/07/15/email_warrantless/
Kevin Fayle
"A US appeals court has issued a ruling (PDF) that overturned a previous decision by one of its panels preventing government searches of private email accounts without prior notice to the account holder. This ruling removed an injunction keeping the government from conducting any such searches in the court's jurisdiction, and, for the time being, put the brakes on a constitutional challenge to email searches under the Stored Communications Act where the subject did not have an opportunity to obtain judicial review prior to the search."