Matt Hopkins

Organized crime and local businesses

Victimization surveys have found that small local businesses experience far higher rates of crime than individuals and households. Previous research also suggests some of the crimes suffered may be organized. Furthermore, local businesses may also be invited to play a part in organized crime, for example through receiving and reselling stolen, counterfeit or contraband goods, though this has been subject to little research to date. A victimization survey was conducted in three high crime neighbourhoods in English cities that aimed to establish patterns of organized crime victimization and the extent to which businesses were invited to participate in organized crime. Local police and community representatives were also interviewed to gauge their views on organized crime and local businesses. The evidence collected suggests that the nature of organized crime in relation to business varies widely between high crime neighbourhoods, that invitations to participate in organized crime are very widespread and that the police tend to perceive higher levels of crime organization affecting businesses than those revealed through surveys.

Sobering up Arrest referral and brief intervention for alcohol users in the custody suite

Since their inception in the mid-1980s, there has been a rapid increase in the number of arrest referral schemes implemented in custody suites across the United Kingdom. These schemes have generally been focused upon detainees with drug-related problems and their key aims have been to provide education and treatment for detainees immediately after arrest as this is viewed as the time when the subject will be most contemplative of and receptive to change. It is becoming recognized that the custody suite may also be an appropriate setting for tackling alcohol-related problems through both ‘arrest referral’ and ‘brief intervention’. The article outlines the principles that lie behind arrest referral and brief intervention and it presents a case study of a scheme that provided such treatment for detainees arrested for alcohol-related/specific incidents. Here the background to the initiative in question and the key data collected as part of an independent evaluation are presented. Consideration also is given throughout the article to problems encountered in implementing and evaluating the scheme and it is hoped that some of these will serve as lessons for future research.

Homicide and Organized Crime in England

This article reports results of a study identifying and analyzing the 17 homicides (from a total 696 recorded non-terrorist homicides) committed as part of organized crime in England and Wales in 2005-2006. Homicides related to organized crime were found to follow from inter group rivalries, tensions within the same organized crime group, or police/citizen resistance during armed robbery. The motivations of the homicides can be broadly categorized as instrumental or expressive. Suggestions are made for further research on the conditions surrounding such homicides and on the relative rarity of organized crime related homicides in Britain.

Targeting Prolific and Other Priority Offenders and Promoting Pathways to Desistance: Some Reflections on the PPO Programme using a Theory of Change Framework

The Prolific and Other Priority Offender (PPO) programme was introduced in 2004 to target the most prolific and persistent offenders within Community Safety Partnership areas. Based on identifying offenders through local crime analysis, intensive supervision and targeted intervention, evaluations have shown promising results. By using a ‘theory of change’ approach as an analytical framework and a local PPO project as a case study, this article begins to question whether the rationale behind the PPO programme can be viewed as ‘plausible’, if key strands of implementation are ‘doable’ and if the desired outcomes are ‘testable’. The article argues that although the rationale for the PPO programme might be plausible, doubts are raised over its likely impact on local crime rates and the extent PPO projects might be able to target prolific offenders effectively. Finally, it suggests that although testable outcomes can be established, the extent to which the programme has enhanced our understanding of desistance is questionable.

Ten seasons of the football banning order: police officer narratives on the operation of banning orders and the impact on the behaviour of ‘risk supporters’

The football banning order was implemented under the Football (Disorder) Act (2000) to target ‘risk supporters’ where the supporter had: (a) previously been involved in football-related disorder; and (b) was likely to be involved in future disorder. Although viewed by the government of the day as a necessary tool to tackle football hooliganism, it was criticised by opponents as draconian due to the restrictive conditions that could be imposed via civil process (on complaint) where no criminal conviction needed to be secured. Despite these ethical concerns, little research has considered how those responsible for the operation of the orders identify and target risk supporters or the impact orders have on the behaviour of risk supporters. This paper aims to redress this gap in the research by presenting the findings of a number of interviews with police officers responsible for the operation of banning orders. The findings show police officers construct narratives that emphasise the need to control risk supporters and suggest banning orders have worked to serve this function. However, closer analysis of the data suggests that the number of banning orders implemented is partially generated by pressure to deliver targets and a desire of officers to justify and preserve their roles. This raises questions about the extent to which pressures to ensure banning orders are issued outweigh any ethical concerns over the use of the legislation.

The transfer of English legislation to the Scottish context: Lessons from the implementation of the Football Banning Order in Scotland

This article compares the enactment of Football Banning Order legislation in Scotland to that in England and Wales. Football Banning Orders evolved in England and Wales through the 1990s into a particular form of hybrid legislation, culminating in the Football (Disorder) Act of 2000. The legislation was not introduced into Scotland until the Police, Public Order and Criminal Justice (Scotland) Bill in 2006. By 2010, it appeared that orders were being under-utilized in Scotland. This raised questions as to whether there was less need for orders within the context of Scottish football, whether the legislation was either being poorly implemented or if imposing orders was being actively resisted. In focusing primarily on the utilization of the legislation by police on the ground, this article questions whether the football or policing contexts are markedly different in the two jurisdictions. We argue that one of the dominant explanations for the comparatively low use of orders in Scotland relates not to the content or interpretation of the particular legislation involved, but to broader differences in how criminal justice legislation is typically enacted.

Once a Victim, Always A Victim? A Study of How Victimisation Patterns may Change over Time

The evaluation of the Small Business and Crime Initiative in Leicester involved before and after victimisation surveys of all businesses in the two target areas. The second was conducted exactly two years after the first. Each sweep achieved a response rate of 65%. A panel sample of 483 businesses took part in both surveys. The results afford an opportunity to track crime experience over time. This paper reports findings about the patterns of continuity and change in victimisation amongst members of the panel sample. Four groups are distinguished: those with low crime levels in both sweeps, those with high crime levels in both sweeps, those going from relatively high to relatively low levels, and those going from relatively low to relatively high levels. Identifying triggers leading from low to high rates of victimisation and from high to low ones clearly has implications for prevention. There may be scope usefully also to track victimisation careers of non-business victims of crime.

Football Banning Orders: The Highly Effective Cornerstone of a Preventative Strategy?

On 13 April 2013, Millwall played Wigan Athletic in the semi-final of the FA Cup at Wembley Stadium, where disorder involving Millwall support- ers at one of the Football Association’s showpiece events firmly placed the subject of football hooliganism back in the public sphere. The events at Wembley were followed by disorder at the Newcastle v. Sunderland game, where 29 arrests were made on the day of the game (in total 106 were made) and a horse was captured being punched by a Newcastle sup- porter on camera. As the media predictably referred to ‘shameful events’ that were ‘reminiscent of the dark days of football riots in the 1970’s and 80’s’ (Watson and Brooke, 2013), political attention turned to what measures were in place to prevent football-related disorder. This subject was raised in Parliament when, on 13 May, Dan Jarvis (Labour MP for Barnsley Central) asked the secretary of state for the Home Office what steps had been taken to enforce banning orders and to reduce levels of violence around matches. On behalf of the home secretary, the Home Office minister Damian Green responded.

Commercial Crime, Crime Prevention and Community Safety: A Study of Three Streets in Camden, North London

Research has indicated that businesses suffer from higher rates of victimisation than households. This produces high consequent financial losses from crime. In the light of these findings, interest in business victimisation, the costs of crime to businesses and how businesses can reduce their risks of victimisation has grown amongst both academics and practitioners. This chapter reports the findings of a research project which investigated commercial crime on three streets in the London Borough of Camden. First,the rates of business victimisation and the impact of crime on businesses are discussed. Second, the efforts of businesses to increase the risks of crime for offenders through installation of crime prevention measures are considered. Finally, business involvement in community safety and the problems encountered when trying to increase it are discussed.

The crime drop and the changing face of commercial victimization: Reflections on the ‘commercial crime drop’ in the UK and the implications for future research:

A growing body of research has both described and forwarded hypotheses to account for the crime drop that has been observed in many western countries since 1995. Commentators have focused on falls observed for households and individuals, with little reflection on the commercial sector. This is surprising given that previous research has recognized both the high rate of crime against some business sectors and the potential impact of crime against more economically vulnerable enterprises. This article explores the crime drop in relation to businesses in England and Wales. It considers whether there is evidence of a crime drop, the extent to which this appears to mirror the patterns observed for households/individuals and presents some tentative hypotheses to explain the patterns observed. Some suggestions are also made for areas that require further research.