Britain | Crime prevention

Why British police should focus on victims

A small number of people suffer a disproportionate amount of crime

British police officers stand in front of a house, cordoned off with police tape.
Who lives there, not just whodunnitPhotograph: Marcin Nowak/LNP

For MOST Britons who worry about crime, two facts should provide some reassurance. First, it has fallen over the past three decades. The latest Crime Survey for England and Wales shows that most crimes, including violent ones and burglary, continue to fall from a peak in the mid-1990s. Second, a relatively small number of people are disproportionately likely to be victims. Previous research has suggested that 5% of people (in Britain and in America) experience 60% of all crimes in which there are victims.

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This article appeared in the Britain section of the print edition under the headline “Victim mentality”

From the February 17th 2024 edition

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