Complaints against officers

[Fedster + 1,307]

Claims of racial bias in lockdown enforcement have been played down by the capital's police force. The Metropolitan Police said hot weather was the biggest driver of breaches and the majority were young, white men.
 

The Met issued a S35 dispersal order for Hampstead Heath and Parliament Hill yesterday following a brawl involving up to 50 people 

Date - 3rd June 2020
By - Chris Smith

The findings were released in an analysis by the Met of its enforcement data which also gave an early explanation of why so few fixed penalty notices have been issued and arrests made in a city with a population of nearly 8.5m.

More BAME people were subject to FPNs but the force said the majority were white males – more than any other ethnic group.

It follows claims by the campaigning group Liberty Investigates that BAME people were disproportionately being issued with enforcement penalties across the country.

A separate academic review of the Met’s data concluded that Black people were issued with 26% of fines despite making up 12% of the capital’s population.

The Met has issued 973 FPNs and made 36 arrests for a breach of the regulations.

The analysis by the force was that in the early stages of lockdown before the rules were relaxed, hot weather and Bank Holidays were when the majority of enforcements were made.

Most encounters with the public were based on the tactics of “engage and explain” and enforcement was usually linked to other offences being committed. The Met also explained that a rigorous quality assurance process had been used to monitor the use of FPNs to ensure officers were acting proportionately.

Assistant Commissioner Mark Simmons said: "From the start, policing this new legislation has been complex and I'm proud of how both the public and police in London have responded.

"Our aim has been to protect London, and not to unnecessarily criminalise where we can avoid it. We have seen, overall, good compliance when we have intervened, meaning in most cases the need for issuing a Fixed Penalty Notice or arrest has been unnecessary.”

Concerns over racial bias in policing have been raised by campaigners at a sensitive time for forces. It follows the decision by the Independent Office of Police for Police Conduct to review Taser use and events in the United States. Police leaders have challenged the IOPC and issued strong condemnation of the death of George Floyd in Minnesota.

The Met said the reasons for disproportionate BAME enforcements were “complex and reflect a range of factors”. This includes interactions in areas of significant proactive policing in crime hot-spots and both the variation in the age-profile and geographical distribution of ethnic groups in London.

AC Simmons said the powers had only been used when officers absolutely needed to.

He added: "However, as well as playing our part in protecting London from the spread of Covid-19, throughout this period the Met has been determined to remain proactive and target those involved in violence and wider criminality.

“Where people have been arrested for another criminal offence whilst also breaching the regulations, they have also been arrested for this breach thus increasing the apparent number of arrests for Covid-19 regulation breaches.”
 

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[SD + 683]

Interesting they automatically assume the numbers must be because of racist police rather than black people being more likely to breach the lockdown. This would also, in part, explain the increased Covid19 death rates in black communities.

[Zulu 22 + 4,569]

24 minutes ago, SD said:

Interesting they automatically assume the numbers must be because of racist police rather than black people being more likely to breach the lockdown. This would also, in part, explain the increased Covid19 death rates in black communities.

Now there are many people who would say that a statement like that is Racist. It is not in any way, it is merely a statement of fact. The problem is that there are so many who do not like facing facts.

[Reasonable Man + 1,230]

23 hours ago, SD said:

Interesting they automatically assume the numbers must be because of racist police rather than black people being more likely to breach the lockdown. This would also, in part, explain the increased Covid19 death rates in black communities.

Without a lot more information you can’t say that it ‘would’ - it may be a contributing factor.

Another significant factor is that black (BAME) people make up a disproportionately high number of people employed in low paid essential jobs - porters, cleaners etc. And those jobs are known to have a lesser standard of PPE assigned. 

[SimonT + 1,185]

Maybe the met were disproportionate, or maybe they perfectly represented what the found. 

It could be a picture of a very complex social situation.

Maybe ethnic minorities in London have poorer education, maybe they don't trust government guidelines as much, maybe they are inolved in specific types of crime that puts them into conflict with police. I don't know, maybe it's none of those. Maybe it is.

But I don't think it can be x therefore y. 

[Zulu 22 + 4,569]

I would like to see the figures for truancy from school. If my experience was anything to go by there were more truancies in the Black community which could explain their under achievement in educational area's. It also makes them more amenable to drifting into low paid jobs and into a criminal culture.

It is no accident that children from Asian and Chinese backgrounds tend to achieve excellent educational results because they recognise the importance of education. They tend to out achieve their white background counterparts, both in education and professional qualifications.

 

[SD + 683]

9 hours ago, Reasonable Man said:

Without a lot more information you can’t say that it ‘would’ - it may be a contributing factor.

Another significant factor is that black (BAME) people make up a disproportionately high number of people employed in low paid essential jobs - porters, cleaners etc. And those jobs are known to have a lesser standard of PPE assigned. 

The increased numbers has accounted for possible socioeconomic factors.