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71 Police J. 317 (1998)
Race and the Practice of Stop and Search

handle is hein.journals/policejl71 and id is 325 raw text is: ALAN MARLOW JANE MADDOCK Vauxhall Centre for the Study of Crime, University of Luton, UK RACE AND THE PRACTICE OF STOP AND SEARCH Introduction In the debates that surround the Stephen Lawrence Inquiry and the allegations and admissions of institutional racism in the police service, critics point to the over-representation of minorities in the statistics of stop and search powers exercised under s. 1 of the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 as evidence of racism. This article describes the findings of research into the use of stop and search conducted in one force and an attempt has been made to describe the practice process and the application of situational logic by which such over-representation can occur. The Law and Practice of Stop and Search The powers contained in s.1 of the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 (PACE) provided a uniform provision for the exercise of stop and search throughout the country. For the first time, police officers, wherever they may work, had recourse to a codified general power. Hitherto, there had been some limited statutory provisions and local powers in some large cities (including London). The local powers did not exist in most other parts of the country (Zander, 1995). The duty to make a record only arises if there is a search. Whilst the Codes of Practice (Home Office, 1995) stress the desirability of obtaining the cooperation of the subject, it seems that in law, where a purely voluntary search takes place, the various safeguards of the Act do not apply (Zander, 1995 p.22). The stopping and checking of persons has always been viewed as a core street policing skill contributing to the overall construction of intelligence patterns and also as measure of proactivity during times of low demand led work - typically the hours between 2200 and 0600. The influence of the Audit Commission report Helping with Inquiries: Tackling Crime Effectivelv (1993) which proposed intelligence-led offence detection and the Home Office's key performance indicators gave added impetus to the frequency of the exercise of the powers. Practice has varied widely between forces. The long tradition in the Metropolitan Police allowed by the provisions of the Metropolitan Police Act 1939 may account for their over-representation in the stop- search statistics, whereas provincial forces, not empowered by statute or local instruments have relied on informal consent based interactions. Many patrol officers have been urged to conduct what were loosely The Police Journal October 1998

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