Teen crime - my experience

Friday, 28th March 2008

As my 17 year-old son was beaten up by a pack of kids last weekend, I had a particular interest in reading Time magazine's report on youth violence in Britain. It doesn't paint a pretty picture.

I can't help wondering how much police procedure helps in all this. My son was attacked - without provocation - on Saturday night. (He told the kids who punched and kicked him that he had a pacemaker, but it didn't make any difference. He was knocked cold in the end, and he's still suffering from concussion.) Yet the officer handling the case didn't plan to interview the main witness - one of my son's friends - until this weekend. In the end I arranged to take both of them into the station last Monday evening. (The police weren't willing to come out to see us, because we live a few miles outside their station's patch, although under the same police authority.)

It's been left up to us to find other witnesses, which we've now done. The PC also told us she wouldn't be able to do anything about the case until this weekend because she is off-duty until then. In other words, it's been left to us to get everything moving. When you've been a victim of crime, you don't really want to be in that position. Perhaps I'm just unlucky, but I've had the same experience several times in recent years. If the officer dealing with your case isn't on duty, you're left in limbo. It doesn't exactly fill you with confidence.