Digital Newsroom Article 2

A Preston councillor has claimed that the public are being failed by the courts on the issue of knife crime.

Francesco De Molfetta, councillor for Preston Central North, said that the court system is far too lenient in sentencing those who commit acts of violence using knives.

“I feel the courts aren’t severe enough. There needs to be harsher penalties; stricter sentences and enforce the parents” he said.

“It’s not as high as London but it’s a real cause of concern. Despite the best efforts of the police it’s not lowering. People need to feel safe.”

Lancashire is the 10th place hot-spot in a table of knife crime figures from 2007/2008, with 361 incidents recorded; a figure less than the 515 incident average for the UK, and one which accounted for 18% of all violent crime in the county.

Below is a timeline of the main reported knife crimes within Lancashire since 2007.



Figures from the Lancashire Constabulary indicate that the peak age of people who possess a knife or carry out knife crime is 17 years old, while the peak age of victims of knife crime is 16 years old.

Assistant Chief Constable of Lancashire Police, Chris Weigh, said: “Lancashire is the 8th biggest force geographically in the country and therefore you would expect us to have a higher number of incidents than a smaller or more rural force.”

Mr De Molfetta went on to say that it was his belief that media coverage encourages knife crime in some instances, but that parents need to take more action.

“In minority cases parents are failing, despite all the support. There is instability in the family; a lack of guidance and routine.

“It’s good that there are more police on the streets. The police and the community need to work better together, but they are doing a good job. They need to be tackled at a younger age within the home and the school, to educate them.”

A statement from the Lancashire Constabulary Press Office said: “Lancashire Constabulary recognises that knife crime is a growing problem in society and proactively tackles the issue.

“Taking knives off the streets will not solve the problem in isolation. In order to reduce incidents involving knives we need to change attitudes. That will involve the whole community, including schools, parents and youths themselves in making knife carriage unacceptable.”

Official figures since Labour came to power in 1997 show that the number of people prosecuted for possessing knives has increased by 72%, to 7,699 in 2006.

The law states that possession of an offensive weapon in a public place is an arrestable offence, as is failing to submit to a search is an offence.