Law Enforcement

Rocketing to Hell

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Did you guys see this?

Seems the European Union is attempting to establish a “European Criminal Records Information System”. The idea is to share information concerning criminal convictions between the member states, and the lack of a program to do this was first noted in the European Council Declaration on Combating Terrorism of 25 and 26 March 2004.

A criminal database is something I heartily approve of, particularly when dealing with all of those little bitty countries that make up the EU. Far too many hardened criminals would slip through the cracks if the police and courts don’t know their past history. In fact, I’m wondering why it took the member nations five years to get off their collective backsides and get around to actually taking action.

But I was taken aback when I looked over the categories of offenses that would make up the data entered into the database. The sheer number of offenses is staggering, taking up at least half of the PDF file I linked to above. And some of them are not anything that I would consider a crime.

For example, number 0200-00 is “Knowingly taking part in the non-criminal activities of a criminal organization”. So that means lawyers who defend gangsters in court are considered criminals?

I was also intrigued by the way that the listed crimes illuminated, if not the actual conditions in the EU, then at least the fears of the people who live there. Section 0400 concerns “trafficking in human beings”, which should most certainly be a crime. But there are eight separate crimes listed! Simply trafficking in humans isn’t enough, they have to break it down.

Take a look at 0403-00, which is “Trafficking in human beings for the purposes of organ or human tissue removal”. That is certainly scary enough, but 0407-00 is reserved for those who kidnap children to remove their organs! What the hell, is Europe turning into one big horror movie? A horror movie where, thanks to draconian gun control laws (section 0500), all of the victims are unarmed? Consider this the next time you plan a vacation overseas.

It isn’t until section 8 where we see violent crimes against individuals crop up. 0807-00 is all about “Offences related to committing suicide”. Take my word for it, if they manage to break this particular law then punishing them is a waste of time.

If you want to see just where the EU is going, then take a look at sections 1205-00 and 1206-00. Both of them say that it is a crime to “insult” the State, the Nation, the symbols of the State or Nation, or representatives of the State/Nation. Does this mean that it is considered a crime if someone writes an op-ed that is disparaging of a politician? Sure sounds like it.

I could go on for awhile, but you get the idea. Click on this link and take a look for yourself.

Keep in mind that this is simply a list of offenses where someone has already been found guilty. It is not a list of new laws, nor is it a sentencing guideline. But if this is an accurate snapshot of what the EU considers to be crimes, then it is probably too late for them.

(Cross posted at Hell in a Handbasket. Hat tips go to Milo and the Libertarians.)

My “I Told You So” Post

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I have been writing for years about the illegal immigration situation in the United States.

It seems that drug gangs based in the north of Mexico have grown enormously wealthy and powerful by using the same routes illegal aliens use to enter the US to smuggle their product. They were so flush with cash, in fact, that they were even able to bribe troops in the Mexican Army to act as bodyguards for some of the smugglers.

The government in Mexico decided to do something about this situation, and they went to war with the drug cartels two years ago. So far, things have not been going very well for the good guys. Assassinations and murder on a scale that boggles the mind.

Now, it would seem, things have taken a turn for the worse. The headline reads “US Military Report Warns ‘Sudden Collapse’ of Mexico Possible”. (Hat tip to Glenn.)

I’m wondering if the US is going to finally do something to help the democratically elected government of our southern neighbor. A good start would be to reduce the profits the drug gangs use to kill all those innocent people. We could do that simply by enforcing our own laws and secure our borders.

Something tells me that won’t happen.

(Cross posted at Hell in a Handbasket.)

So Now it is a Plague???

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Many years ago, before the charity course kicked into high gear, I asked my friend Kathryn if I intimidated her. After all, I was a guy who had a lot of guns, I went to the range frequently, and I was always thinking about self defense options. This put a lot of people off, but not her. Why?

“Don’t be silly!” she said, laughing at my idiocy. “You are a protector!”

That is the best compliment I have ever received.

This op-ed discusses how a male in Great Britain cannot stop to talk to a child in public without facing arrest. London Mayor Boris Johnson claims that this is due to the “pedophile plague”.

So the incidence of pedophilia in the UK is so great that it is considered a scourge on society? I can’t seem to find any statistics concerning this, and even the author of the op-ed uses US statistics on page 2 of her article to make a point. But, if it isn’t a problem, then why would a male who is seen to be conversing with an unattended child be snatched up by the police and bundled down to the precinct house for some hard questions? Maybe it is a case of public perception run amok, seeing monsters where few actually exist.

One thing is for sure. The threat of arrest, of having my good reputation smeared by suspicion even if no criminal charges are ever brought before a court, would cause even me to pause before helping a child in distress. And that means actual stranger pedophiles, those who snatch children from public areas, are given an open field. The greatest protection a child could have in those circumstances, that a passer by would intervene, is much reduced.

What the hell is going on over there in the UK?

(Hat tip to Glenn. I cross posted this at Hell in a Handbasket because the readers over there are more involved in self defense and crime prevention.)

Oh, To Be a Lush in England!

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Mark Steyn gave all of us a heads up a few days ago to a new public safety scheme in Great Britain. The police will distribute gaily colored flip flops to drunk women as they exit pubs and attempt to wend their boozy way home. Without high heels to trip them up, the poor girls will avoid twisting their ankles. Or, horror of horrors, have to walk home barefoot with the fashionable footware dangling from one nail varnished paw!

Now Milo has sent me news of yet another police program to keep the streets safe. This time they are passing out free pens to drunk people in Manchester. Pens that double as bubble blowers.

The idea is that violence, assaults, property damage, and excessive late night noise will be abated if the drunk people are distracted by these little toys on the stagger back to the ol’ homestead. They used to pass out free lollipops, but that wasn’t doing the trick. It was decided that the big guns in the form of bubble blowing pens was necessary.

My admittedly limited background in law enforcement leads me to think that arresting drunk hell raisers and tossing them in a cell for 12 hours or so is the best way to reduce all that violence, noise, and torn up private property. There must be something about the conditions in England that makes this a losing strategy, like maybe their drunks are so dangerous that they have to be placated by toys and free giveaways so they don’t tear up the town like Godzilla. Lollipops, bubbles, and flip-flops are the way to go over there when dealing with these pub-crawling menaces!

I had no idea that the police in Britain were overwhelmed by hordes of drunk people, swarming the streets every night at closing time. It must resemble some sort of zombie movie every evening.

It would also seem that their medical facilities are swamped by miniskirt-clad doxies, demanding treatment for twisted ankles and stubbed toes. I would discuss how this was predictable considering how England has socialized medicine, but then I realized that would steal some thunder from our readers.

Mumbai Musings

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Like most people, I was shocked and saddened to hear of the terrorist attacks in Mumbai, India last week. Close to 200 people dead so far, with untold numbers more injured. It is a tragedy of terrible scope.

Speaking as someone who works with violent crime survivors, I can attest that there is a hidden cost that very few of us will ever see. Thousands upon thousands of people were involved with the victims, from family members and close friends to coworkers and casual acquaintances. Most of those people will find their lives have been changed, and rarely for the better.

Although hardly an expert on terrorism, I have been paying attention to the issue over the years. I thought I’d share a few thoughts.

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