Losing Control of the Streets

[mk1]

as I said, two carried out the attack - while 18 others watched. You either find that acceptable or you don't.

Standing around watching is the default action of the vast majority of people. Normal decent citizens do it all the time.

As for whether your example is more serious or not - both are serious are they not? So are we now splitting hairs?

My villain has an extensive history of violent crime. I know for a fact he has been convicted 3 times for assaulting women other than his partner. One of his convictions is for   smashing his way into a pregnant woman's house and beating her with an iron bar so no. I think one is potentialy much more serious than the other. The fault lies with the Mail who no longer bother to send reporters to the courts. They much prefer lurid headlines and  scaring people to reporting  serious crime.

[notenoughsaid]

   I am surprised we have got to 15 replies before anybody has mentioned "parental responsibility"...In an ideal world all present (quoted  as 20) would have two parents at home. Therefore potentially 40 adults should  be asking their offspring to account for their movements at approx.8.50p.m. on the night.  Any parent should know if their child is lying by the time they reach their teens.  I accept that yobs travel to different  areas and get themselves involved in trouble miles from home which  illustrates a lack of control,however it should not be that easy for parents to be let off the hook and avoid responsibility.   As a father of two (and a shift worker) my wife kept a grip in my absense .  Times have changed since then  but the "system" worked.

[fred c]

mk1, your example is an extremely serious case for the woman involved..... but no more worrying to her than it was to the 60 odd year old chap being threatened by a gang of youths.

We can trot out all the cliches under the sun about lack of parental control, single parents, dropped on their heads when babies etc etc etc, but when & where does violent behaviour commence & what measures can be introduced to curtail it.

I ask you again, what would your answer be ?

[mk1]

I ask you again, what would your answer be ?

Well at one time I would have moaned about gangs of youths roaming the streets unchecked and tried to sort it out myself. Actualy did it as well. Full blown fights and all that. However was persuaded by my daughter (worried about her dad ending up dead) to have a word with the local CSO's (what can they do? laugh at the law, parents don't care etc.) and do you know what-once the parents were informed they curbed the troublemakers!
Make what you will of that!

[The Great Dictator]

Will the other 18 be giving police statements, i don't think so, just birch the f*c**ng lot of them, little motherfu*kers.

[rabbit]

To reiterate:

According to the Mail (a bit like the Sun this), the police spokesman said:

A spokeswoman for Cleveland Police said: "Police are appealing for witnesses in relation to an assault in Wiltshire Way, Hartlepool, last night.
"A 60-year-old man was assaulted by 15 to 20 youths in an unprovoked attack on Wiltshire Way close to Springwell School.

Was he or wasn`t he?

I wondered if it was an offence not to give evidence to the police on such a matter but this makes it a little clearer:

quote "No law says you have to report a crime to the police or give evidence. But remember, by coming forward you could bring a criminal to justice. You could also stop the same thing happening to others."

http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/CrimeJusticeAndTheLaw/VictimsOfCrime/DG_181647

[steveL]

Testy - you really need to get that Tourettes seen to.....

[steveL]

Think you've hit the nail on the head there, mk1, but what a shame some parents need a knock on their door before they have any idea what their kids have been up to.

I think there's also a problem with younger kids. I must have been in my thirties before I learnt what the 'age of criminal responsibility' was (10 BTW). There's a lot of 9 year olds out there who can tell you precisely what it is these days and who believe it's a license to do what the hell they like. Again, it's a gap in the law.

My own view is that up until the age of 10, the responsibility must lie with parents and there should be some route to fine parents for the actions of their pre-ten year old kids. Leave a vacuum and something is bound to happen to fill it.

[Lucy Lass-Tick]

Good point...it does seem a bit odd that people are held accountable for the actions of their dogs but not those of their children...