"The victim, who died at the scene on Caledonian Road, Islington, on Tuesday, has been named as Nedim Bilgin. Two male suspects, aged 16 and 17, were arrested nearby on suspicion of murder, and an 18-year-old man was arrested at an address in Islington, the Met Police said" Source: Liverpool ECHO

Another day, another knife crime homicide victim. Someone's son, grandson or sibling, another life cut short before it was able to blossom and the perpetrators whose own lives will be scarred and stunted by their violent behaviour. Homicide figures are up for the fourth year in a row and are higher than they have been for 10 years. On top of this, there was a 12% increase in violent crimes where a knife or a sharp object was used - 40,000 incidents in the last year and the trend continues upwards. If this were not bad enough, the clear-up rate continues to decline. What is going on in our society and why do more young people feel it is necessary to carry a weapon? 

‘I was once dragged into a van and had a replica gun placed against my head. In that situation, all I had to do was pull my blade out and it was job done. I stabbed him in the leg. I used my knife and I am proud of it. It is all about the psychology of fear, about who has the power. They know you are serious when you pull something out. Everyone who carries a knife has a reason. Some people do it for the power and the reputation, I do it for the protection. The police aren't going to come and help you. It is up to people to help themselves.’ Source: The Guardian 

Society living under the rule of law must be able to trust the law to provide communities which are secure. Citizens need to be able to trust the police to protect them against the commission of crime and bring justice to those who transgress. If that trust departs and people look to their own resources for solutions, this situation will further spiral out of control. 

The omens are not good. Police budgets no longer allow for routine neighbourhood patrols, a chance for local officers to get to know their communities, all the public see is police officers in vehicles charging towards the next crisis. Added to that, local youth services have been cut hard by hard-pressed local authorities. Local Magistrates Courts are closing and legal aid rates for those involved in criminal defence are so poor that law firms themselves can no longer do this work profitably and lawyers are leaving this field of work in droves. Whilst parliament looks the other way, the essential elements of a secure, peaceful and just society continue to crumble.

Alfie Bradley of the British Ironwork Centre in Oswestry has created the Knife Angel, a 27-foot high sculpture made up of 100,000 weapons that were confiscated by 43 police forces across the UK. He had special permission from the Home Office to collect the knives which were blunted for use in the making of the statue. It is a powerful image of the deadly nature of weaponry carried on our streets and designed to show the impact of knife crime on all of our lives. For the past six weeks it has been on display at the entry to Liverpool Cathedral as Liverpool itself has seen the same rise in violent offences and knife crime as the rest of the country.

However powerful the image of the Knife Angel is, it cannot in itself make the difference required to intervene in this national crisis. The government are proposing more offences and tougher sentences but the real solution is more investment into the infrastructure supporting our justice system at grassroots level. We are lucky to still have our brilliant criminal defence team, which is part of our commitment to making a positive difference in society, but it is tough going and difficult to sustain. Let’s hope the government starts to see what a dangerous path we are on.