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Alcohol arrests of U16s hits 340 in a year
Monday 4th January 2010, 11:30AM GMT.
A total of 340 youngsters under the age of 16 have been arrested by West Midlands Police for drink-related incidents, new figures released today reveal.
Crimes involving youngsters under the influence of drink include criminal damage, theft, violence and drug offences. The youngest was just 10, a child who was collared for violence against a person. Figures released under the Freedom of Information Act show 340 youngsters under 16 were arrested between April 2008 and March 2009.
The figures relate to suspected crimes in which the police database showed that alc-ohol was a contributory fac-tor in the arrest.
As well as the 10-year-old an 11-year-old was also arr-ested for criminal damage. Five 12-year-olds were also arrested, three for violence against a person, one for theft and handling and one for criminal damage.
The figures also show 20 13-year-olds were arrested, 89 14-year-olds and 224 15-year-olds.
Most of their alleged crimes, 133, were for violence against a person. Another 50 were for theft and handling while 48 were for criminal damage.
Two arrests were made of 14-year-olds for sexual offences while 28 arrests were made for allegations of burglary or robbery.
One 15-year-old was also arrested for drug offences.
In May last year figures showed one in five crimes in the West Midlands was committed by a child.
Figures for 2007/08 showed that 18 per cent of arrests in the West Midlands were 10 to 17-year-olds. Some 11,329 juveniles were detained by West Midlands Police – 32 per cent for violent offences, 29 per cent for theft, 19 per cent for criminal damage and five per cent for burglary.
West Midlands Police was today unavailable for comment. It states on its website that it acknowledges the importance of diverting young people away from crime, as well as managing young offenders by intervening at an early stage.
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Maybe it’s the law that needs changing? Children can legally drink alcohol on private property from the age of 5 despite the fact that alcohol kills over 40,000 in the uk every year. Is it not shocking a child can legally drink such a deadly lethal drug at such a young age? One law for the legal taxed drugs and another for the illegal untaxed drugs. People need to see through the double standards.
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why are we not asking why children feel the need to become drunk and incapable?
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I’d like to bet the parents are as bad!!
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Margaret Hamilton are you serious? Have you forgotten what it is like to be a child?
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Being a realist there shall always be underage drinking, mayhbe it’s time we learnt to accept it.
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i agree with 1,2 and 3. just surprised its not more. less than one a day in the whole of WM Force.
un interested parents, lack of education, let down by the council for not providing anything for kids to do, no jobs for young people. a circle which keeps repeating itself. Make a change in May people.
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WES… I remember being a child once. I certainly don’t remember wanting to be drunk. I do remember enjoying a sip of my dads beer though lol
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I assume it is just children drinking in public that is the problem and not children drinking at home on private property where they can legally drink alcohol once they hit the grand old age of 5.
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It’s a sad reflection of today’s society – When Adults cannot control their Drinking what hope ist there for their children.
Every Day we see NewsPaper Images of Drunk Teenagers and Young Adults sprawley over pavements – claiming they were only having a good time. Why is it they have to get hopelessly incapable to have such a good time its way beyond my comprehension. Supermarkets sell Alcohol at Great prices – but why do we have to abuse it all
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“West Midlands Police was today unavailable for comment.” ..what, was the main office closed off (under what some consider the absurd assumption crime doesn’t occur afterwards)? Sorry folks, but I have all but lost faith in what I see as a political police force.
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When the police stations won’t open doors to the public..what do you expect?
I think the above figures are tiny compared to the reality, and no I don’t have it in for the police; I respect what they have to do with the resources they’re given. But I don’t the public wants or appreciates ‘special operations’, CCTV measures, or empty political promises; they want real common sense policing, for the benefit of the victims not the criminals or the people attempting to take power away from local communities and into the hands of the EU.
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What’s the betting the parents are dole bludgers? Spending all their hard earned on booze. It makes me sick to se eteh taxpayer fund people liek this.Bring back National Service!!!
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JIWAL, I think that’s a tad presumptuous. Why attribute bad behaviour to one’s employment status? I know people who are unemployed and yet they still know where their kids are at night, and what they’re upto. I know this is going off-topic a bit, but if you think it’s that easy being on the dole, please try it..
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