http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/3330827.stm

quote:

The police must keep better records, the government has said amid calls for the vetting system to be overhauled. Concerns have been raised about how Soham murderer Ian Huntley was allowed to work with children despite past allegations of rape and underage sex. Home Office minister Hazel Blears said in a Commons statement that police forces must have better systems for inputting arrest and conviction details. She said a year-long study of forces' performance was "not encouraging", but that new practices had been put in place to overcome failings. PREVIOUS ALLEGATIONS AGAINST IAN HUNTLEY One of indecent assault Four of underage sex Three of rape - one resulted in a charge Clarity urged over data act Q&A: Vetting school staff She made the emergency statement in answer to a question from Soham MP James Paice, who wanted to know how Huntley slipped through the net. Police interviewed Huntley 10 times in the 1990s over accusations of having sex with underage girls and alleged rapes. Despite this frequent contact, he was still cleared by the police vetting system and employed as a school caretaker. Details of his arrests had been deleted from police files. An urgent review of how his background was checked was carried out by Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary and a report leaked to the BBC found details of convictions and arrests were not being inputted into the national computer. Jessica's mother described her "loud, noisy and a real tomboy". On average, it was taking forces 50 days to input details of a conviction rather than the week it should take. As a result, someone with Huntley's background could still be recruited by an education authority. 'Full of holes' Labour MP Debra Shipley, who introduced the Protection of Children Act 1999, said the system for checking backgrounds was riddled with "huge holes". But when she had tried to get government ministers to address the issues she was repeatedly "brushed off", she told BBC Radio 4's Today programme. The confidential report, which was commissioned by the Home Office in the light of the girls' murders, concluded that the situation was "getting worse". Scotland Yard commissioner Sir John Stevens said police should try to hold on to records as long as possible. Many police forces must do a lot better to reach the standards we are entitled to expect Hazel Blears Worries over school staff checks 'Police 'must do better' on data He said: "With the Data Protection Act you have to push it to the nth degree." However, the president of the Police Superintendents' Association, Kevin Morris, said there was confusion about what records should be kept by forces. This had led to the policy being interpreted in different ways by different forces, with some "weeding out" more information than others. An inquiry announced by Home Secretary David Blunkett almost immediately after the verdict will examine the vetting procedures that allowed Huntley to get a job as a school caretaker. LOGGING ARREST REPORTS Police target: 90% within 24 hours England (average): 79% within 24 hours Wales (average): 76% within 24 hours Source: Home Office statistics This will focus on the effectiveness of intelligence and vetting used by the Cambridgeshire and Humberside forces to examine Huntley's background. The police and social services are also carrying out investigations into their respective roles in the case. Mr Paice called for the inquiry's results to be made public and as quickly as possible. "It is essential that, while we can never eliminate risk, we ensure that those who work with our children do so with our trust," he said. Huntley was given two life sentences at the Old Bailey for the murders. He is to undergo psychiatric tests to assess whether he should be held in a secure mental hospital or jail. Possible protection for Carr Carr, 26, was given three-and-a-half years for conspiring to pervert the course of justice but cleared of two counts of assisting an offender. David Hart, general secretary of the National Association of Head Teachers, said schools had to be confident that background checks were thorough. Governors at Soham Village College have decided to demolish the house Huntley and Carr shared and the hangar in the school grounds where the girls' clothes were found. No date has been set and in the meantime, 5 College Close, where the girls were killed, will be hidden by trees and boards, said principal Howard Gilbert.

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aka Tits McGee
aka Chesty LaRue
aka Busty St. Claire

Last edited by squirrelly on Dec-18-2003 at 22:05