CRIMINAL JUSTICE

BURNING WORK, JUNE 22, 2020

Chaired by Jerome Bond

Charles Crichlow

Unjust State Murders ‐ US to the UK : Unjust state murders are not exclusive to the United States. Not only does the UK have a long history of over policing black and brown communities, the UK Police Federation (PF) has consistently acted to protect offending police officers from the justice system in a way that even the American system is not able to. In these opening remarks Charles used personal reflections from discrimination that he faced in the Police to draw a comparison with wider structural racism that pervades British Policing. He noted that institutional actors in the UK, such as the Police Federation, designed to hold officers to account for their actions, have instead accommodated a culture of inaction and indifference to the injustices of discriminatory policing and state murders that persist.

Transparency & Accountability Deficits in UK Policing: In the face of discriminatory policing institutions and practices, the smart camera phenomenon in filming and facilitating the sharing of police behaviour has revolutionised our ability to observe and organise around police misconduct. However, Charles noted that this same public facilitation which brings Police conduct into the spotlight, enabled by digital tools, has not yet taken place in the all important Police Boardrooms where key strategic decisions around Race Equality strategies for example are designed and monitored. The result is a creation of a transparency deficit at crucial levels of the Police. Building on this idea of a transparency deficit, Charles noted that a similar deficit exists when we look at the ways in which the Police hold themselves accountable via the Police Professional Standards. In effect, as Charles notes, we allow the Police to "mark their own homework" when they review their own conduct and shortcomings. Instead, Charles argues that we need to take accountability outside the hands of the Police's Professional Standards and design "entirely independent" institution in its place to provide real accountability to the public.

Next Steps for UK Policing: Legal Duties and Reparatory Justice: In light of the racial inequalities, transparency and accountability deficits that persist in the criminal justice system, we asked Charles whether a legal duty to reduce these disparities would be effective in Policing and what the contours of such duty would look like. Charles noted that such a legislative duty to reduce racial disparities, going beyond the current duties under Equality Act, would be incredibly useful. However, he cautioned that such duties would be ineffective if not enforced by a body of professional, independent scrutineers rather than by the Police themselves. Returning to this notion of accountability in Police, Charles finished his contribution to the session by answering a pertinent question regarding the effectiveness of the Black and Asian Police Association (BAPA). Formed as a result of concerns around deaths in custody and increased stop and search, BAPA initially emerged as a form of internal accountability and as a network to speak truth to power. Charles notes that this ethos remains within BAPA but that increased work with the community must be coordinated. This opens up space to discuss what design could facilitate community work in conjunction with BAPA and what role this vehicle could play in organising around the deficits, inequalities and discriminatory practices that persist in British Policing as highlighted by Charles.

Carson Arthur

Widening our understanding of State Racial Violence: In broadening the terms of reference in how we discuss the criminal justice system and looking at how the state also polices black communities in immigration tribunals, detention centres, probation services, education, access to healthcare and the youth justice system Carson argued that we can develop stronger arguments, connections and parallels of the way in which the state discriminates against black communities that move beyond single issue campaigns. In this way not only is our understanding of the criminal justice system, policing and the control of black communities by the state widened, but it also allows us to design more effective lines of solidarity with existing campaigns which tackle state racial violence. Through the lens of his research into Black British deaths in custody, Carson broadened this point regarding state racial violence further in noting how legal justifications in the coroner's court which defend the killing of black people have become common sense in the language of decision making. Tying into Charles point regarding Police accountability, Carson asked us to think critically about this legal "common sense" and how we can act to shift the legal and political terrain that enables these decisions.

Testimony as a form of resistance: Referring to Windrush testimonies that were presented earlier in the day, Carson noted the power of testimony as a tool for community organisation, care and resistance against the government. He asked us to think critically about how we, as a community, could think about how to bring together testimony to investigate patterns of injustice and map how violence is mitted out against our communities. In this way, he argues testimony becomes stronger as it forms part of a collective effort to cohere and coordinate arguments against discriminatory treatment.

Defunding the Police in the UK: With calls to Defund the Police gaining traction in the US and the UK, Carson cautioned that there is danger in such a narrative that funds are simply directed to civic roles to carry out the enforcement functions of the police rather than a fundamental questioning of the value of these functions and what state funding of public safety should look like. Noting the importance of the current political moment where the British economy will be reconfigured in light of Brexit, Carson asked what opportunities this juncture provides for black community organisation in light of the dependence that the state has on black communities within the UK but also internationally as trade deals are designed and argued for in the public domain.