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Watching news and all this "I'm just so shocked someone would bring a knife into Thorpe Park" conversation demonstrate the problems around public understanding use of force. No copper is surprised that a venue that is full of young people had someone tooled up. Thread.
Everyday we talk to young people on the street, victims and suspects alike. Every day we stop and search people, the majority of whom are young. If you want to talk about disproportionality in stop amd search look at ages. Young people are targetted at a higher rate than ANYONE.
Why do they get targeted? Because we know how many of them are carrying knives. Members of the public are shocked that someone took a knife into a theme park, well when you have seen 12 year olds take knives into schools it really isn't that surprising.
When you have accompanied social services on a home visit because a 6 year old made a cardboard and tin foil knife at school and threatened to "splash" a 5 year old, you're not surprised.
When you have been reviewing CCTV of a fight at "just a BBQ" and from first shove to 28 seconds in a total of 11 people have pulled knives, you're not surprised.
When you've done CPR on a gang nominal on the top deck of a bus after he had been stabbed 28 times including through the eye socket, (those horrible racist Police saved his life btw) you're not surprised.
When you have had to stop and search a 9 year old because CCTV have informed you that the older boys with him have just put their knives into his schoolbag on hearing sirens, you're not surprised.
These things are shocking to normal people, but Police aren't normal people in that regard. They have this knowledge flying round their heads all the time. Our risk assessments aren't the same as yours because of what we know, what we have seen.
It's easy to pass judgement, claim you would have done it this way or that way, but when you have seen this stuff you assess the world differently. So if you see Police taking robust action to detain someone who isn't coming quietly, maybe you shouldn't be shocked either.
