• Corpus ID: 151001776

Assessing the Police Use of Decoy Vehicles

@inproceedings{Sallybanks2001AssessingTP,
  title={Assessing the Police Use of Decoy Vehicles},
  author={Jo Sallybanks and Brian Dunn and Mark Taylor},
  year={2001}
}

• Jo Sallybanks, Brian Dunn, M. Taylor
• Published 2001
• Law

" The views expressed in this report are those of the authors, not necessarily those of the Home Office (nor do they reflect Government policy). " The Policing and Reducing Crime Unit (PRC Unit) is part of the Research, Development and Statistics Directorate of the Home Office. The PRC Unit carries out and commissions research in the social and management sciences on policing and crime reduction, broadening the role that PRG played. The Police Research Series presents research material on crime prevention and detection as well as police management and organisation issues. Copies of this publication can be made available in formats accessible to the visually impaired on request. Foreword A decoy vehicle initiative is just one tool available to the police to combat vehicle crime. This report presents the findings of a case study of one such initiative that took place in Cleveland Constabulary. The work highlights good practice in the use of this type of operation in support of the Government's 30% vehicle crime reduction target which is to be achieved by March 2004. Decoy vehicles can be used to target both thefts of and from vehicles. They are chosen to be similar to those vehicles targeted for theft, and are parked in a high vehicle crime location as 'bait' for offenders. Decoy vehicles are specially adapted and may be fitted with technical devices which make it possible to trap an intruder inside. The report describes, in the first instance, the results of a national survey regarding the use of decoy vehicles and highlights issues that should be considered in their deployment. It further focuses on the initiative undertaken in Cleveland Constabulary using a decoy Ford Transit van. The report concludes with a number of recommendations regarding good practice in the use of decoy vehicles at a local level and at a more strategic national level. The report recommends that an effective decoy operation is highly dependent upon accurate local level analysis to determine the precise vehicle crime problem together with a well-planned and implemented scheme. It must be remembered that decoy vehicles are just one method of combating a specific vehicle crime problem and should therefore form part of an overarching vehicle crime reduction strategy. Acknowledgements Many people have contributed to this research. I would also like to thank all those police officers who gave their time freely to take part in telephone interviews regarding the use …