Poor policing leads to public feeling 'over policed and under-protected'
18 June 2021, 07:53
Ex-Met Superintendent's insightful response on youth murders
"Do you believe that a lack of trust in the police is leading directly to more dead teenagers?": Ex-Met Superintendent Leroy Logan gives his response, as London is 'set for the worst year' for youth murders.
The former senior Police officer was speaking to LBC's Tom Swarbrick after Met warned London is "on track" to suffer the worst year for teenage killings in more than a decade if youth violence continues at the current rate.
Mr Logan said that a lack of trust led to a "lack of partnership between the community and the police," meaning they were less likely to assist officers with investigations.
He said this could also lead to a lack of "proactive information".
The ex-top cop said senior officers needed to work to build trust and ensure frontline officers treat the public with "respect and dignity."
Branding stop and search as a "heavy-handed" method when used in conjunction with handcuffs.
The former officer also said filming of these interactions can lead to people "overpoliced and under-protected."
The Metropolitan Police said that knife and gun violence could lead to the highest number of homicides among young people since 2008, when 28 young people were killed.
Seventeen teenagers have been killed in London so far this year, even as serious violent offences declined by 22% and the overall murder rate is down over the past year, the Met said.
Suspects have been charged in 13 of the 17 investigations, in which 15 of the victims were killed with a knife and more than two-thirds were black, the force added.
By May of this year, 12 young people had been killed compared to 14 in the whole of 2020 while in June, three teenagers lost their lives in a single week as a result of knife and gun violence.
