Lawyer's knife killers cause same pain as mine

Did you see the news about murdered lawyer Tom ap Rhys Pryce? My heart goes out to his fiancée. She described his loss in an 'impact statement' to the court. She said it is impossible to convey in words the pain and horror at such a brutal end to her lover's life. As someone who was caught up in a knife killing - trying to help a victim - I feel almost the same.

Jacky Marshall's death was so needless at the hands of her killer Shane Freer. Talking with her family since, they too are devastated. Nothing goes away, it's with you all the time. The trauma, pain and loss - and what happens in these murders, killings and attacks - is just always there.

Murderered lawyer's fiancée tells of indescribable pain - Daily Mirror

And what about the latest revelations? Research shows street robbers are increasingly likely to kill for kicks not cash.

The Daily Mirror article I read said most attackers wanted to boost their "street cred", have a fight or just enjoy the "buzz" of committing crime.

One robber said: "It weren't for money. I had money. It was more like the buzz you get from doing things. I was more addicted to robbing than I was to drugs. I get a funny feeling robbing."

Another said: "It's for the fun. The point of street robbery is to get him to fight back, innit? If he won't fight back, we just give him a kick and go."

A third said: "I picked a fight with the first people I come across. I started hitting one. Then I jumped on him."

A third of those interviewed had been arrested more than 50 times.

Criminologists Trevor Bennett and Fiona Brookman, who carried out the study for the Economics and Social Research Council, said: "This worrying social problem is poorly understood."

Rio Ferdinand backs anti-knife drive

Some positive news - one of England’s top soccer players has made a plea to the nation's young people: Respect Your Life - Not a Knife.

In a bid to stop young people carrying knives, Rio Ferdinand launched a hard-hitting anti-weapons campaign today — warning kids: “Knives are not cool, they kill.”

See full coverage at the BBC and the Sun newspaper.

Rio is desperate to wipe out the scourge of killings by blade-wielding youngsters on Britain’s streets. Rio (28) knows only too well the peril of knives having grown up on a tough inner city estate in Peckham, South London.

He helped establish the Damilola Taylor Trust in 2000 after the ten-year-old schoolboy — whose dad Richard is also involved with the initiative — was fatally stabbed nearby.

Rio said: “Trying to be a gangster isn’t cool. Kids who carry knives and weapons have their lives changed irreversibly.

“Some carry them through fear to protect themselves, but it’s no protection. If you have problems speak to someone you trust. Someone who can help in a positive way.

“The statistics are shocking and show that 28 per cent of children in mainstream schools and 57 per cent of excluded children said they’d carried a knife in the last year.”

As part of the initiative, youngsters will be urged to make an anti-knife pledge. Almost 4,000 schools across the UK will be encouraged to take part in the scheme by putting up pledge walls.

It is hoped displays, made up of poems, thoughts and comments made by the children, will encourage communication and enforce the dangers of carrying knives.

A Damilola Taylor Trust spokesman said: "Statistics show that the vast majority of knife crime injuries are caused when kids carry them to defend themselves and then they are used against them."

Anti-knife campaigning - enforcement alone is not enough

North of the English border, the Scots may be making better progress towards tackling knife crime.

I wonder how to better 'seize the day' in England to make the selling and carrying of knives a more responsible activity (in the same way we tackle smoking cigarettes with legislation, education - and big 'you're going to die' notices on packets of fags!). What do you think are ways to tackle this problem?

Here's a summary of the news I spotted in Scotland:

A major new campaign aimed at challenging attitudes towards the carrying of knives across Scotland has been launched.

It is the latest effort to tackle the problem and follows new legislation to toughen the laws on knife carrying.

The campaign will be conducted at a cost of £580,000, with anti-knife roadshows touring areas affected by violent crime.

Enforcement alone cannot solve Scotland's knife culture, according to campaigners, who aim to challenge the idea that knife carrying is acceptable and/or normal.

Read full BBC story

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Regina v FREER - verdict: Sussex Police

Click on image above to see Brighton Trials Unit letter about Freer's conviction.