Rise in use of stop and search across Cornwall and Devon
Thousands more were conducted last year - although not as many led to an arrest
Devon and Cornwall Police conducted thousands of more stop and searches last year, figures show, though fewer led to an arrest.
StopWatch UK said declining arrest rates across England and Wales suggest that relations between the police and the public are deteriorating.
Home Office data shows officers in Devon and Cornwall used stop and search powers 8,420 times in the year to March – up from 5,794 the year before.
Despite this rise, the proportion of searches which led to an arrest fell from 15% to 13% over this period.
Across England and Wales, the number of stop and searches rose from 577,000 in 2019-20 to 704,000 in 2020-21.
This means almost 2,000 people were stopped per day on average last year, with figures peaking in mid-May 2020, when there were almost 3,000 searches each day.
But the national arrest rate fell from 13% to 11% – the lowest level since 2012-13.
Data for Greater Manchester Police is excluded from yearly comparisons because the force was unable to provide complete figures for 2019-20.
StopWatch UK said the vast majority of searches cause more problems than they solve.
Habib Kadiri, research and policy manager at the police monitoring organisation, said a fall in arrest rates reflects fears that police-community relations are backsliding.
The figures also show that across England and Wales, black people were significantly more likely to be searched than white people, though slightly less so than the year before.
In Devon and Cornwall, they were 9.5 times more likely to be stopped, compared to 10.3 in 2019-20.
Mr Kadiri added: "What is exceptional is how racial disparities persisted even during a global pandemic, proving that the police never stopped working tirelessly to overpolice people of colour.
“We simply would not accept this of any other emergency service profession. The police must do better.”
Across the two nations, 479,000 (68% of all stops) were for drugs – the highest proportion since records began in 2006-07.
In Devon and Cornwall, 78% of stop and searches were for this reason – up from 71% in 2019-20, and also a record high.
Dr Laura Garius, policy lead for Release, which comprises experts on drug laws, said black and other ethnic minority individuals are being disproportionately targeted, despite drug use being no higher among these groups than among the white population.
She added: "The declining find and arrest rates are further proof that these powers are over-used, ineffective, and harmful to black and brown communities – in particular, black men – as well as those living in lower-income areas."
The Home Office said police used extra officers and resources to tackle drug crime during the coronavirus lockdown, and also removed almost 16,000 dangerous weapons from our streets.
A spokesman added: “No one should be targeted for stop and search because of their race and there are extensive safeguards in place to prevent this.”
Across Cornwall and Devon, officers used stop and search in the period 8,438 times to seize 993 items, including 62 offensive weapons, 74 items of stolen property and 803 quantities of drugs. On 20 occasions items were seized which related to ‘going equipped’ to commit a crime.
A total of 34% of stop and searches carried out by the force had a ‘positive outcome’ and the activity led to 1,102 arrests.
Of those subjected to a stop and search in the force area 5,626 were white and 160 were black. Based on ethnicity recorded in the 2011 census this indicates that black people were searched at a rate 11.1 times that of white people, a slight decrease from the 2019-20 rate of 11.9. These rates assume that all those stopped and searched were resident of the force area.
Alison Hernandez, Police and Crime Commissioner for Devon, Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly, said: “My new police and crime plan prioritises reducing the harm caused by drugs, violence and antisocial behaviour and these figures show that stop and search has played a vital part in taking drugs and weapons off the streets.
“The disproportionality figures are based on census data which is a decade old and do not take account of the estimated eight million visitors we have to Devon and Cornwall each year. It is a considerable concern for me in terms of my ability to scrutinise force performance in this area that this will remain the case at least until we have the results of the 2021 census.
“I do not, however, want our residents and police officers to lose sight of the fact that effective use of stop and search makes them and their loved ones less likely to be stabbed, have access to drugs or to have their homes broken into.”
Devon and Cornwall Police is a member of the national Best Use of Stop and Search scheme, ensuring that it maintains the public’s trust and confidence.
You can find the source data here.