NCJ Number
96792
Journal
British Journal of Criminology Volume: 24 Issue: 4 Dated: (October 1984) Pages: 361-383
Date Published
1984
Length
24 pages
Annotation
The paper presents a typology of incidents occurring during football crowd disorders in England (which resulted in arrests and court appearances) and examines the exercise of police discretion in selecting charges when prosecuting those arrested.
Abstract
Examination of police files and, in particular, the evidence of arrest/incident report books revealed a number of typical interaction patterns. These were classified into 14 homogeneous types according to the basic interaction pattern involved. Reclassification of the types of incidents described into four broader categories according to the target of the alleged offense showed that incidents of type 1 to 8 involved acts of a crowd or crowd member against a crowd or crowd member supporting an opposing team, while type 9 incidents involved behavior of a crowd or a crowd member against football players, referees, or club property. Type 10 and 11 incidents involved behavior of a crowd or a crowd member against football spectators or the public in general; incidents of type 12 to 14 involved acts of a crowd or a crowd member against the police. Examination of the exercise of police discretion revealed that prosecutions for common law offenses were voided. There was a marked preference for bringing prosecutions for statutory offenses that could be dealt with successfully by magistrates. Criteria influencing the way in which the police exercised discretion when selecting charges were administrative reasons and a wish to maximize the certainty of convictions and the severity of sentence awarded. Seventeen references are provided.