Policing policy under scrutiny

Fears grow that unorthodox methods are being used to get arrests in Zero
Tolerance scheme By Tanya Thompson

Controversial Zero Tolerance policing has come under scrutiny after two CID
officers in England were suspended amid allegations that they offered
suspects heroin in exchange for confessions.

The news could have serious implications for Strathclyde Police, which is
one of a number of forces across Britain to have adopted elements of the
revolutionary crime policy.

Devotees of the system, pioneered in New York, claim the rate of offending
has plummeted as officers crack down on street thieves and petty criminals
in a bid to prevent more serious crimes.

Detective Superintendent Ray Mallon of Cleveland Police in Middlesbrough
was hailed a hero among the police fraternity as the man who introduced
Zero Tolerance and reduced burglaries to a tenyear low.

But the officers suspended from Cleveland Police on full pay have brought
the entire policy under the microscope.

There is growing concern that unorthodox policing methods are being used as
high targets continue to be set within the force. Mr Mallon, widely
regarded as a maverick when he took up his post last November, had vowed to
quit if he failed to cut crime by 20 per cent within 18 months.

True to his word, figures released last night for October boasted a
reduction of overall crime by 22 per cent with a 37 per cent reduction in
house burglaries. Violent crimes were also down by 14 per cent.

As the Zero Tolerance initiative in New York swept the streets clean of
thieves and pickpockets while dramatically reducing serious crime, there
was hope of similar success in Britain.

But the dream may have turned sour after several cases in Cleveland were
thrown out with police evidence found to be unsafe. The Crown Prosecution
Service in England is understood to be considering a review of a further
500 cases.

Zero Tolerance has its dissenters, notably the Thames Valley Chief
Constable Charles Pollard who branded it a "quick fix" solution. He warned
that it was "myth peddling" and said: "Zero Tolerance peddles the myth of
police omnipotence when we know from experience that the search for quick
results disastrously backfires."

Despite the criticisms, Strathclyde Police has continued to espouse aspects
of the scheme in the hope of seeing a similar success in Scotland.

Although the force has denied employing Zero Tolerance, many of the
measures used such as the Spotlight policies borrow heavily on the US system.

Strathclyde was the first police force in Britain to launch its version of
the tough New York policy, Broken Windows.

The campaign aimed to deter all levels of crime and prevent minor
transgressors such as school truants from progressing to more serious crimes.

Operation Spotlight in Strathclyde has also been credited with playing a
key role in last year's drop in crime to a 15year low.

Chief Inspector Caroline Scott of Strathclyde Police said last night there
were no plans to change its policies in the light of the Cleveland
suspensions.

She said: "Strathclyde Police doesn't operate a policy of Zero Tolerance.
There will be similar methods but there are also substantial differences.

"It is important to recognise the different legal systems in Scotland and
England. What happened in Cleveland bears no relation to Strathclyde
Police. Our officers behave ethically and responsibly. We are a
professional police service and we have a duty to operate within the
confines of the law."

Just like Cleveland's example, Strathclyde's success has come in areas
affecting quality of life.

Since adopting Spotlight policies last year, house breakins are down 13
per cent, car crime has fallen by 24 per cent and violent crime has been
reduced by 13 per cent.

William Bratton, the former New York police chief who created the Zero
Tolerance anticrime strategy had urged police chiefs in Britain to follow
his example.

His policy depended on a heavy police deployment. If every fare dodger,
vandal, drug addict and litterbug was challenged, more serious offences
would be discouraged too.

The phenomenal success of this strategy in New York city, where murders
have fallen by 63 per cent in four years, had silenced the critics.

But now serious questions are being asked about the kind of methods
employed to ensure the success of Zero Tolerance.

A spokesman for Cleveland Police last night said that despite the serious
allegations against the two CID officers, there were no plans for a policy
Uturn.

He said: "It is a proven policy which we will not be changing. Officers are
asked to be firm and are told they must act within the law at all times.

"There is no question of officers bending the rules. As Det Sup Mallon
says, every officer must have integrity, integrity, integrity.