UK Policing News

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/london/8161154.stm A pretty much non-story, however the below caught my eye Surprised no-one questioned this!!

Link This is interesting, does anyone know which force has the highest amount of Taser per officer

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/bradford/8160171.stm A 29-year-old man accused of killing Pc Sharon Beshenivsky has told a court he was a mere "foot soldier" in the armed robbery in which she died. No comment, but will try to keep trial up to date.

The UK terror threat level has been lowered from "severe" to "substantial", the Home Office has said. The level was raised in 2007, meaning a terrorist attack was "highly likely". The downgrading means there is a "strong possibility" of an attack. Home Secretary Alan Johnson said there remained a "real and serious threat" from terrorists and the public would see little change in security measures. The level is set by the UK's Joint Terrorism Analysis Centre (JTAC). The JTAC, which is a unit within the security service MI5, sets the level based on the intelligence available about terrorist intentions and capabilities. According to BBC home affairs correspondent Dan…

From BBC - http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/devon/8155441.stm

The police are failing to use CCTV to catch as many criminals as they could, a senior officer has told the BBC. Det Ch Insp Mick Neville of the Met police's CCTV unit said most forces do not have systems to retrieve, process and distribute CCTV crime scene images. Officers in some London boroughs are failing to solve any tier one and two crimes such as serious assaults and robberies using CCTV, he added. A new study says there may be a million fewer UK CCTV cameras than thought. DCI Neville told the BBC's The World At One and Newsnight that, while his own force had made errors, the picture for the rest of the country "isn't good". He added: "Because we had CCTV f…

Terrorism stop-and-searches have been suspended in Hampshire after police used the powers almost 3,500 times but made no terror-related arrests. Hampshire Constabulary used section 44 of the Terrorism Act to stop people 3,481 times in 2007/2008 and held 36 suspects for non-terrorist activities. It said it wanted "to be more in line with other forces". Thames Valley Police used the powers 244 times and made 40 non-terrorism arrests. Assistant Chief Constable David Pryde, of Hampshire police, said: "After [a] review, we determined that it would be appropriate to be more in line with other forces. 'Prone to abuse' "We now have suspended Section 44 Stop and Search u…

http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2009/ju...-discrimination DNA database plans based on 'flawed science', warn experts • Criminologists say scheme ignores reoffending rates • Concerns over 'racist' imbalance of profiling "Flawed scientific thinking" in the government's proposed changes to the DNA database will leave it open to further challenges by the courts, experts have said, in a stark attack on Home Office plans to overhaul the current system. The proposals, set out as part of a government consultation after the existing DNA database was found in breach of human rights last year, are based on exaggerated scientific claims and ignore the realities of persist…

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/surrey/8154898.stm Tarrant ex-wife parking row fine The court heard Mrs Tarrant was "abrupt and rude" Chris Tarrant's ex-wife Ingrid has been fined £2,700 over a confrontation with a police officer over a parking ticket. She had to be chased, wrestled to the ground and handcuffed during the incident in Cobham, Surrey, on Christmas Eve. She was convicted of failing to stop for a Pc, causing an unnecessary obstruction, resisting a Pc and wilfully obstructing a Pc. Tarrant, 54, denied the charges at Staines Magistrates Court. She was abrupt and rude to Pc Peter Groves when he tried to issue her with a ticket for obstruction, after l…

http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/about-us/news...vel-substantial The Joint Terrorism Analysis Centre (JTAC), which operates independently of Ministers, has changed the UK threat level from international terrorism from SEVERE to SUBSTANTIAL. Keep them eyes open.

Rather impressive video... I'm wondering how exactly he landed quite that far on top of the BMW? Link (w/ video): http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/wales/8002737.stm

A Tory government would attempt to remove the long standing peace camp in Parliament Square, David Cameron says. Mr Cameron today told Sky News' Sunday Live a future Tory government would take steps to have it removed. He said: "I am all in favour of free speech and the right to demonstrate and the right to protest. "But I think there are moments when our Parliament Square does look like a pretty poor place, with shanty town tents and the rest of it. "I am all for demonstrations, but my argument is `Enough is enough'." http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/default.stm "I am all in favour of free speech and the right to demonstrate and the right to protest." - well,…

http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/news/...range-vest.html CRIMINALS as young as ten could be forced to wear bright orange jackets to do community service. One can foresee a time where these jackets will be made designer jackets, and will be the next cool thing after ASBO`s.

Police officer died in tree crash A man who died after his car struck a tree has been identified as a Hampshire police officer on his way to work. Pc James Drew, of Eastleigh, crashed into a garden in Alresford Road, near Winchester, sometime between 0600 and 0700 GMT on Thursday. The seriously injured Pc was discovered in his car by a resident at the house, who phoned police. The 27-year-old was cut free from his Skoda Octavia and taken to hospital where he later died. The cause of the crash is not yet known. No other vehicle was involved. Police believe Pc Drew was heading eastbound towards Alton along the A31, about half a mile east of the Percy Hobbs round…