| Author | Message | ||
     Johnnymceldoo |
Jump up and down and shout to beat street crime By JONATHAN OLIVER - More by this author ยป Last updated at 22:33pm on 3rd February 2007 Witnesses to violent street crime should try to 'distract' attackers by honking their car horns or even 'jumping up and down'. That's according to Labour's Police Minister. The extraordinary remarks by Tony McNulty prompted an immediate, angry response from law and order experts, who described him as 'irresponsible'. The standard police advice to people who witness violent behaviour is that they should not get involved and immediately call 999. But in an interview with the BBC's Jeremy Vine, Mr McNulty said concerned citizens should 'try some distractive activities' instead. The Minister, who is the deputy to Home Secretary John Reid, suggested that 'simply shouting' at would-be muggers or 'blowing your horn' at them could act as a deterrent. And he said that people who witness an attack in the street should 'jump up and down' while waiting for the police to arrive. What do you think about the Police Minister's advice? Tell us in readers' comments below... His comments come during a deepening crisis in the Home Office and follow new figures showing a sharp rise in violent crime. The interview with Mr McNulty is part of a Panorama special being screened tomorrow evening which examines the crisis of anti-social behaviour sweeping Britain's streets. Law and order campaigners warned that anyone following the Minister's advice to 'distract' robbers could be putting themselves at serious risk. Street criminals routinely carry knives or even guns and there have been a growing number of incidents in which so-called onlookers who intervene have also themselves been attacked. The remarks add to the already confusing and sometimes contradictory messages sent out to concerned citizens. In some cases police publicly praise so-called 'have-a-go heroes'. But in other situations, people taking the law into their own hands have become police suspects while the original perpetrator has walked free. Even honking a car horn, as Mr McNulty suggests, can backfire. A motorist who sounded his at a pedestrian who stepped out in front of his car was recently fined by police for 'excessive' use of the instrument. Serving police officer Norman Brennan, director of the Victims of Crime Trust, called the Minister's remarks 'irresponsible', adding: "Tony McNulty needs to get into the real world. Only then will he realise how ridiculous these remarks sound. The public are not going to jump up and down - they are going to be scared witless." For the Tories, Shadow Police Reform Minister Nick Herbert said: "Jumping up and down and waving your hands in the air in a hopeless manner does seem to be the standard Home Office response to problems these days. The public need some consistent guidance about what they should do in these circumstances." Figures out this month showed a two per cent rise in crime over the past year to a total of 2.44million incidents, with gun crime soaring by ten per cent. And there was a 46 per cent surge in householders suffering the terror of being robbed at gunpoint in their home. The statistics come against a backdrop of a growing crisis in the Home Office, with Mr Reid admitting he and his ministerial team had failed to make the Home Office 'fit for purpose'. Mr McNulty was reshuffled from immigration to his current brief last May after the scandal over foreign criminals being allowed to walk free without even being considered for deportation. But, as the man in charge of law and order, the 48-year-old MP for Harrow East has continued to be dogged by controversy. He was recently blamed by the Tories for another furore, this time involving Britons who committed sex crimes abroad being allowed to return home and work with children. Extract from the full Panorama interview Jeremy Vine: "You see a young man looking aggressive, shouting at an old woman. What do you do? Do you retreat and ring the police?' Tony McNulty: "I think you should in the first instance. It may well be simply shouting at them, blowing your horn or whatever else deters them and they go away." Jeremy Vine: "He's now hitting her and the police haven't come. What do you do then?' Tony McNulty: "The same, the same, you must always..." Jeremy Vine: "Still wait?' Tony McNulty: "Get back to the police, try some distractive activities." Jeremy Vine: "What? Jump up and down?' Tony McNulty: "Sometimes that may well work." | ||
| Johnnymceldoo |
Here are some interesting quotes from the article: Street criminals routinely carry knives or even guns and there have been a growing number of incidents in which so-called onlookers who intervene have also themselves been attacked. Figures out this month showed a two per cent rise in crime over the past year to a total of 2.44million incidents, with gun crime soaring by ten per cent. And there was a 46 per cent surge in householders suffering the terror of being robbed at gunpoint in their home. Does this mean perhaps that criminals do not recognize the tight restrictions on weapons like handguns or knives? If your home is invaded how do you protect your home? Jump and shout? | ||
| Mark_in_ireland |
Quote...If your home is invaded how do you protect your home? Its feeding time for my dogs...  | ||
| Glitch |
Dead dogs if the prowler's got a gun I'd think. | ||
| New12r |
I have dogs, then guns, and in GA I can kill without much consequence. Not that I would want to, but if I had to. |
