Violent Crime, Domestic Abuse and Alcohol

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Barnsley Safer Communities Partnership Domestic
Sexual Abuse Conference
Links with Mental Health, Alcohol and Substance
Misuse
Presented By Rosemary Clewer
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Workshop Objectives
PUBLIC RESPONSIBILITY PRIVATE FREEDOM ECONOMIC
ACTIVITY
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• At least 90 of British adults drink alcohol.
• Drinking at a responsible level can be a source
  of enjoyment for the vast majority of those who
  participate.
• Over 1 million people are employed in hotels,
  pubs, bars, nightclubs and restaurants in the UK.
• Tackling alcohol-related offending, Enforcement
  Responsible Retailing

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NIGHT TIME ECONOMY
Source British Beer Pub Association
ECONOMY vs SOCIAL IMPACT
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• In 2005, 4,160 people in England and Wales died
  from alcoholic liver disease an increase of 41
  since 1999.
• Alcohol-related illness or injury accounts for
  180,000 hospital admissions per year.
• 17 of all road deaths occur when someone was
  driving while over the legal limit for alcohol.
• The average weekly consumption of alcohol
  reported by young people who drink aged 1115
  years doubled in the 1990s.

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• Alcohol arrest referral pilots
• Review of Industry Standards approved by
  Ministers, now out to tender (BII)
• Successful Tackling Underage Sales of Alcohol
  Campaign (TUSAC) run over summer
• Experts group on replacement glassware and
  targeted premises has been formed.
• Know Your Limits national campaign re-launched
  in October 07 new and bigger campaign set for
  April 08

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PATTERNS of DRINKING
Experiencing Alcohol Dependency
Experiencing Problems
Experiencing Minor Issues
2-3 Units F 3-4 Units M
Dependent
Harmful
Safe
Hazardous
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World Health Organisation

• Estimated Annual Burden on Health Services,
  Billions ()

Domestic Violence 23 billion per year -
Criminal Justice - Health Care - Housing - Civil
Legal - Economic Output - Human Emotional Costs
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• In 2006/07 the victim believed the offender to be
  under the influence of alcohol in 46 of all
  violence (1,087,000 incidents) British Crime
  Survey
• The majority of violent incidents take place at
  night, particularly stranger violence and
  wounding.
• A fifth of all violent incidents are committed in
  or around pubs.
• Half of all violent incidents take place on a
  Friday or Saturday, between the hours of midnight
  and 6am.
• 63 of 1824-year-old drinkers admit to
  committing criminal or disorderly behaviour while
  drinking.

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• The British Crime Survey 06/07 - victims believed
  the offender to be under the influence of alcohol
  in 46 per cent of all violent incidents
• 58 per cent of incidents of stranger violence,
• 47 per cent of incidents of acquaintance
  violence,
• 39 per cent of incidents of domestic violence
• Total of 1,087,000 violent incidents in 06/07
  where the victim believed the offender to be
  under the influence of alcohol.
• 70 of overnight and weekend attendances in
  Accident Department are alcohol related

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• Operation Blizzard Fixed Penalty Notices
• Alcohol Confiscation
• Responsible Retailer Scheme
• Best Bar None
• Tackling Underage Sales of Alcohol Campaign
  (TUSAC)
• Triage Tent
• Taxi Marshals
• Traffic Light System

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Mental Ill Health and Problem Drinking?

• Depression resulting from, for example,
  bereavement, retirement or arising out of the
  blue
• Anxiety social anxiety, claustrophobia,
  agoraphobia.
• Obsessive - compulsive disorders
• Manic - depressive illness the elation phase is
  associated with drinking bouts
• Bi-phasic - euphoria/despair
• Bi-Polar extreme mood swings

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• Women experiencing domestic violence are up to
  fifteen times more likely to misuse alcohol and
  nine times more likely to misuse other drugs than
  women generally.
• 1 in 4 women and 1 in 6 men in their lifetime
• Domestic Violence has more repeat victims than
  any other crime (on average there will have been
  35 assaults before a victim calls the police)
• On average, two women are killed every week by a
  current or former male partner.
• Repeat victimisation is a common precursor to
  homicide

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• Education and Public Awareness (Wide range of
  age/type related interventions, Public Health
  Campaigns and TIE)
• Alcohol arrest referral through custody suites
  court
• Community Detox
• In-patient Detox
• Residential Rehabilitation
• Sobriety Abstinence based Organisations
• Brief Interventions Programmes through primary
  and secondary care

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COMMON SENSE, Hypocrisy, BLATANT COMPLACENCY

• Benefits connected with the production, sale and
  use vs cost to society and the individual
  (physical toxicity or/and intoxication or/and
  dependence).
• Strategies Intervention (Local level from
  resource allocation to local government lobbying)
• Pricing Taxation (Reducing alcohol related
  problems both physically socially)
• Regulating availability (Commercial vendors
  Increasing Laws of consumption)
• Modifying the drinking context (Cultural
  Social)
• What are we self medicating against?
• Criminal Justice Interventions (Swift justice and
  economic penalties) Violent crime, Domestic
  Violence Drink Driving, etc.
• Education and Public Notices (Wide range of age
  related interventions, Public Health Campaigns
  and TIE)
• What next?