Should we treat (violent) crime as something to be cured rather than punished?

[davidbfpo]

The public health approach to violent crime, whether in Glasgow (Scotland) or Baltimore, Chicago and New York, often prompts admiration and replication. This article is a 'Long Read':https://www.theguardian.com/news/2018/jul/24/violent-crime-cured-rather-than-punished-scottish-violence-reduction-unit?

A couple of "tasters":
More often than not, solutions have been sought in the criminal justice system – through tougher sentencing, or increasing stop-and-search (despite substantial evidence that it is ineffective in reducing crime)....(later) ... police are often part of the problem.

A rather different comment from John Carnochan, the former godfather of Scotland’s Violence Reduction Unit, has some uncomfortable messages for politicians and crime fighters hoping to emulate his success.
Link:http://https://www.holyrood.com/articles/inside-politics/scotland-far-being-fixed-interview-john-carnochan

[AdamG]

Ever sit across a table from the loved ones of a murder victim and watch them get the 1,000 yard stare as they stir sugar into their coffee long after it's been absorbed?

[davidbfpo]

An interesting viewpoint on the public health approach to violence - can the much-hyped Glasgow approach work elsewhere, notably in London?
Link:https://members.tortoisemedia.com/2019/03/09/knife-crime/content.html?sig=QThbvstgmWJ0hKkAqwu70RHVKstE0EcE1 4u3sEsdMOE&utm_source=Twitter&utm_medium=Social&utm_campaign=9March19&utm_content=Not_a_sticking_plaster

This year has seen an increase in public place violence, invariably with knives and with many deaths:
Two-thirds of police forces in England and Wales recently responded to a Freedom of Information request from Channel 4's Dispatches which showed that, in those force areas, the number of teenagers recorded as having killed with a knife had risen from 26 in 2016 to 46 last year. Patient records from hospitals in England show that seven years ago 141 teenagers were admitted after assaults with a sharp implement like a knife. Last year it was almost twice that - with a clear rising trend.
Link:https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-47443956