State racism - stop & search 2002-03

Stop-checks up nearly 50% for Asians and 100% for blacks in Greater Manchester

GM police report (10th Dec 2003)
THE NUMBER of black people stopped and searched by police in Greater Manchester has doubled in the past year. Stop-and-search tactics were used nearly 65,000 times across the GMP area in 2002-2003, an overall increase of 46.7 per cent.
Those checked included 51,073 white people (a rise of 38.9 per cent), 3,522 people of Asian origin (up 47.2 per cent) and 5,860 black people - a 100 per cent increase.
Chief Constable Mike Todd favours stop-and-search as a valid and useful tactic against crime, particularly street crime. It is being used in a more intelligence-driven manner, targeting crime hot spots and poorer areas where such crime is more prevalent.
Police say the disproportionate number of minority groups in these areas is a prime reason for the increased chance of them being the targets of stop-and-search tactics.

New procedures for Stop & Search (Connections, Spring 03)
Under new legislation (which came into force in April 03),
 - an officer must not search a person where there are no powers to do so ,
 - the legal powers must be explained,
 - a record must be made, including the person’s self-defined ethnicity,
 - the person must receive a copy of the record.
 
Asians more likely (18%), blacks (27%) to be stopped than whites (S Worker 26 Apr 03)
Criminologist Ben Bowling of Kings’ College published new research into the use of police powers under the Criminal Justice Act (1994) which was aimed at tackling hooligans or illegal ravers. Under this law, police can stop people even without any reasonable grounds for suspicion.
These discretionary powers have been used against ethnics – the research found that Asians are 18 times and Afro-Caribbeans 27 times more likely to be stopped than whites.
Said Prof Bowling: ‘Wherever officers have the broadest discretion, you find the greatest discrimination. That’s where the police culture affects the decisions taken.’ 

Black editor humiliated in stop & search (Morning Star, 24 Feb 03)

New Nation editor Michael Eboda was stopped by 4 armed officers when he and girlfriend pulled into the driveway of his East London home yesterday morning. At least 30 more officers then arrived, many armed and with dogs, and began frisking the couple and searching Eboda’s car – a Jaguar. He was told his car & skin colour ‘fitted the profile’ of those involved in gun crime.

Eboda commented: ‘I was utterly humiliated on my own doorstep. How can we trust the police when they themselves see nothing wrong stopping & searching a black because of his car?’

Official figures show black people are 8 times more likely to be stopped & searched.

‘Black people 8 times more likely to be stopped by the police’ (D Mirror, 8 Nov 02)
Three years after the Stephen Lawrence inquiry, stats show that black people are 8 times more likely to be stopped and searched than the whites. S & S are up by 40% for Asians. They are also 4 times more likely to be arrested – while whites are more likely to be cautioned. These figures appeared in a Home Office report.

Stephen’s father said the figures were ‘shocking’. Doreen Lawrence (mother of Stephen) said: ‘I’ve always said the police have been waiting to go back to the way they were before. But they have gone even worse than they were before.’

[Now note how the govt views the figures]

The Home Office report said: ‘not all the differences are down to racism… It would be implausible to say that none are due to discrimination.’ Home Sec D Blunkett and Lord Chancellor Irvine in a joint statement said: ‘the disparities are unacceptable… [the ethnic minorities] continue disproportionately to run afoul of the CJ system. A modern, fair, effective CJ system is not possible while possible of the pop perceive it as discriminatory.’  [Note the language. No apology, no firm resolve to restrain the police or reform the service]

Ray Powell, leader of the National Black Police Association said: ‘It just shows that whatever the govt is doing isn’t working. It will reaffirm the belief that the police service is institutionally racist.’

Stop & Search (Socialist Review, April 02)

Home Sec Blunkett has launched a new offensive on the stop & search issue. ‘We must respect and tolerate differences but not tolerate unacceptable behaviour.’ The rightwing rags which back tough measures have headlined íSUrge in Street Crime  and Black gangs lead crime wave. Earlier these rags had pursued the line that following the Macpherson report, the police are afraid to stop black people.

The reality is that the proportion of black people stopped and searched has risen from 5 to 7% sicne Macpherson. What has fallen (by 18%) is the stop & search of whites.

Stop & Search (National Assembly Against Racism, April 02) 

While the overall use of stop & search has fallen by 17% in 2000-01, black people are 5 times more likely to be stopped and searched  than whites. Blunkett’s new plans include hand held computers to police to record the incident & to give the person stopped an immediate readout.

This differs from Recommendation 61 of the Macpherson report requiring the police to record the reason for the stop, the outcome and the self-defined ethnic identity of the person stopped.