PACE stop and search figures

Report: 5
Date: 29 August 2000
By: Commissioner

Summary

This report provides figures on the use of Stop and Search in the MPS. It gives a breakdown of the numbers and results of Stop and Searches by reason and by ethnic group. The report outlines the development work currently in hand, which will culminate in the production of an integrated MPS wide policy and guidance document and action plan.

A. Supporting information

Use of stop and search - main trends

1. The attached charts show monthly stop and search figures, and arrests, since August 1998. The overall numbers of stop and searches carried out, post Macpherson report, have been reducing year on year. In 1998/1999 there were around 39 stop/searches per thousand population, and this fell to 23 per thousand population in 1999/2000. For the first three months of 2000/2001 (Apr - Jun) the number equates to an annual rate of 20 stop/searches per thousand population.

2. The equivalent figures for minority ethnic and white people are given in the table below:

Stop/searches per 1000 population

* shown as annual figure

The total numbers of searches per month, together with searches of minority ethnic and white people per thousand population, are shown in Chart A. (Appendix B)

3. Arrests have also fallen, although not to the same extent (Chart B Appendix B). This has resulted in an increasing arrest rate due to more directed and intelligence led use of the powers.

Arrest rates

Chart C Appendix B shows the increasing arrest rates since August 1998 plotted against total searches.

Reasons for stop and search

4. The main object of searches are stolen property, drugs, firearms, offensive weapons and going equipped. The table below shows searches and arrests by object of search for the quarter April to June 2000:

5. The arrest rate for going equipped is much lower than that for the other objects of search while accounting for a sizeable proportion of the searches conducted. The arrest rate for 'other' is always high since searches under 'other' are limited to only 9 specific (and lesser used powers), whereas an arrest under 'other' can be for any reason other than the 5 objects above.

6. The proportions of searches conducted and arrests made are summarised in the table below. Note that the percentages for arrests here do not relate to the arrest rate but represent the proportion of the total arrests that relate to each of the objects of search.

7. These proportions are similar to previous quarters. These data indicate that 46.0% of all PACE searches conducted and 38.2% of arrests as a result of searches over the period in focus were in relation to drugs. ‘Going equipped’ accounts for 14.0% of searches, but only 5.3% of arrests (hence the relatively low arrest rate). Whilst only 2.4% of searches have been carried out for ‘other’ reasons, arrests within the ‘other’ category are far greater, accounting for 23.1% of all arrests.

Proportionality

8. This section presents a breakdown of searches per thousand population by ethnic group (Home Office four point ethnic code) and object of search. Figures relate to the quarter April to June 2000. The population figures used are based on the MPD 1998 mid year estimate of the 1991 Census and assume that the ratios of ethnic groups are the same as when the 1991 Census was conducted. It should be noted that it is likely that the ethnic profile of people policed in the MPD now differs from these assumptions.

9. The arrests per thousand population broken down by ethnicity and object of search are shown below (April to June 2000):

10. The resulting arrest rates are:

11. Note that, as mentioned earlier, the arrest rates for the object of search ‘other’ is potentially misleading. Disregarding ‘other’, the highest individual rates are within 'stolen property', ‘firearms’ and ‘offensive weapon’, and the lowest for all groups is 'going equipped'. The arrest rate within the category of drugs is very similar across the ethnic groupings.

MPS response

12. The MPS has examined the issue of Stop and Search, particularly in the light of the Macpherson report. MPS action has included commissioning a report by Dr Marian FitzGerald into the use of Stop and Search by the MPS. A summary of her Searches in London report is attached as Appendix A. The MPS has also initiated a number of pilot schemes supported by the Home Office to improve the professionalism and the quality of interactions when the powers are used.

13. In response to the academic research, lessons learnt from the pilot schemes, and as part of the MPS Diversity Strategy, the MPS is developing policy and guidance on the use of Stop and Search. The policy and guidance pulls together the various strands of work on Stop and Search undertaken within the Home Office, MPS, and across police forces in England and Wales. In the preparation of the document, the MPS is receiving valuable help and advise from the Staff Associations, Home Office, the Commission for Racial Equality, the Independent Advisory Group, and the National Association for the Care and Resettlement of Offenders. The policy and guidance document, and implementation plan, will be submitted to the MPA in due course to the Consultation, Diversity and Outreach committee.

B. Recommendations

1. Members are asked to note the statistics provided, and the ongoing development work; and
2. It is recommended that any discussion of MPS policy on the application of Stop and Search be referred to the Consultation, Diversity and Outreach committee.

C. Financial implications

None

D. Review arrangements

None

E. Background papers

The following is a statutory list of background papers (under the Local Government Act 1972 S.100 D) which disclose facts or matters on which the report is based and which have been relied on to a material extent in preparing this report. They are available on request to either the contact officer listed above or to the Clerk to the Police Authority at the address indicated on the agenda.

PIB1 Report - Searches (Quarter April to June 2000)

F. Contact details

The author of this report is Cath Kitching, Corporate Performance Analysis Unit.

For information contact:

MPA general: 020 7202 0202
Media enquiries: 020 7202 0217/18

Appendix A

Brief summary of Dr Marian FitzGerald’s report “Searches in London”

Contribution of saearches to tackling crime:

• Searches contribute to the detection and prevention of crime through arrests, and through the intelligence they produce.
• The arrest rates tend to be higher for ‘low discretion’ searches, where officers have received information from a third party.
• The report claimed that the power has a general impact on crime prevention, demonstrated by independent statistical analysis. However, this important finding was disputed by the independent analyst contracted to carry out the investigation.

Patterns of searches:

• Officers target certain individuals who they perceive to be involved in crime locally.
• Officers may use the power of stop and search to disrupt groups of young people.
• The use of the power is still perceived as a measure of productivity although searches have not been used as a Performance Indicator since 1997.
• Most searches were carried out on young men, around half of which did not live in the local area.

Why are searches a source of tension?:

• Searches are a source of tension because they take place in public, and may affect bystanders’ perceptions of the police.
• Being searched adds to people’s dissatisfaction, and it is equally important for police to be polite and give an adequate explanation for their actions.

Areas of concern:

• The recorded fall in searches since the beginning of 1999 has stemmed from a mixture of insecurity, low morale and cynicism, and has not been accomplished by an increase in public confidence in the police.

General problems:

• The manner in which some officers use the power causes unnecessary bad feeling.
• People may be searched more often if they have criminal records, but this is not legitimate grounds for a PACE search.
• The power may be used unjustifiably for purposes of social control.
• A proportion of searches and arrests from searches are for possession of cannabis, which may give a criminal record to people who are not otherwise involved in crime.

Impact on minorities:

• Searches may begin to criminalise young Asian men, who are perceived as threatening if they congregate in groups in public spaces in certain areas.
• If searches were limited to occasions where police respond to information from third parties, the over-representation of black people relative to their presence in the population at large (aka proportionality) would not decrease.

Ways forward:

i) Specific recommendations

• Informal warnings should be given where people with no previous cautions or convictions are found in possession of cannabis.
• Collection and co-ordination of community intelligence should be used, and intelligence should be used more systematically for the purposes of briefing officers to improve their efficiency in searching.
• Arrest rates fail to measure the impact of searches. Systems should be developed to capture the yield from searches more fully.
• Sergeants should be held directly and formally accountable for monitoring and directly supervising the search activity of the officers they are responsible for.

ii) New approach

The report recommends taking a positive approach which encourages officers to use the power professionally, within a clearly defined framework linked specifically to public concerns and police objectives.

• Local Commanders should conduct an audit of their use of the power, and share the results with other agencies in local crime partnerships.
• The partnership should agree a plan for the use of the power in the context of local crime strategies.
• The plan should be widely publicised, with clear information targeted at young people.

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