The issue of approaches to under-12s is enormously emotive and clearly we are all aware of that. However, I do not think that Parliament or the public are genuinely in a position in which they could say that under no circumstances will a police officer ever search someone under the age of 12, with consent.
The issue of informed consent is, of course, more complicated, but it is the duty of a police officer, as laid down by statute in the Police and Fire Reform (Scotland) Act 2012 and as established originally in the Police (Scotland) Act 1967,
“to prevent and detect crime ... to maintain order ... to protect life and property”
and
“to take such lawful measures”.
That duty is not vested through the office of the chief constable; it is vested in individual police officers.
On occasion, stepping out of policy does not necessarily mean that a police officer is stepping outside the law. Although ACC Mawson, for reasons that he explained reasonably articulately a few moments ago, assured Parliament that there would be no searching of under-12s, the simple reality is that, on occasion, that such a search is an entirely justifiable approach to take.
I was doing some research—I am sure that that does not come as a surprise—on relevant examples, and one that struck me as being particularly pertinent in relation to youngsters and their exposure to crime does not come from the central belt, as would be expected. It is the case of a young man who is currently serving a lengthy period of imprisonment. I picked it up from a report in the Inverness Courier. Stephen Stewart, who now goes by the name of Stephen Ross, was sentenced to life imprisonment for stabbing two strangers in 2011. The case was reported extensively in the Inverness Courier. One of the articles stated that Stephen started his “career” of offending at the age of 10.
I know that police officers, by and large—in fact, almost universally—have no desire to stop large groups of youths for the purpose of searching them. That is an absolute reality. However, I think that it is wrong simply to say that it can never be done. That does not deal with the reality of public expectation or with the fact that police officers have the duty to act in accordance with the obligations that are placed upon them in law.
I was unaware of the examples that have been cited when I wrote a piece for The Times about children throwing eggs and shining laser pens. I just do not believe that the public is going to accept that the police will turn up and, in effect, do nothing because of an individual’s age.