Because they ban them, right?

So why would police in London be interested in what’s going on in Cincy?

In the world of policing, news travels fast. So when the city of Cincinnati, Ohio managed to reduce its murder rate from 89 in 2006 to 55 in 2007, police forces in both America and the UK took notice.

Officers with the Metropolitan Police, plagued by their own deadly gang problems, decided last summer to pay a visit to learn more.

That’s impossible. London can’t have “their own deadly gang problems” because guns are banned, aren’t they? You’re not permitted to go around shooting and killing people … that’s … against the law.

But it happens anyway. Cincy’s solution?

The force uses a model of policing that involves arranging a ceasefire between warring gangs identified with help from the criminal justice department at Cincinnati University.

“We bring these individuals together in a face-to-face meeting and we tell them in no uncertain terms that when the next body falls, if they’re part of the group responsible, we will give them a VIP service - that’s Very Intense Prosecution - that we will get the shooter as well as all the members of that group,” said Mr Baker.

“We tell them we know who they are, where they hang out, even who their girlfriends are. They take notice.”

Fascinating stuff. There’s no “we ban guns” in there. Restricting purchases, micro-stamping, all that stupid crap that doesn’t mean a damn thing to a thug who doesn’t give a shit about a “no guns” zone just like he doesn’t give a shit that he can’t read past the 3rd grade level.

“There’s one strand that focuses on the ceasefire, another on enforcement, and another on community involvement. For the model to be effective, the community strand has to be adequately supported and resourced.

It’s sad that I find it refreshing when somebody points to a largely social reasoning behind violence instead of just pointing to the gun and screaming their heads off. I don’t agree with huge social programs designed to “reach out” and make people love the police, but I’m thankful it isn’t another one of those ridiculous “gun buyback” programs they’re touting.

And if you want to find out how to fail at something, look no further than Boston, Mass:

The Cincinnati strategy was first developed by Harvard University professor David Kennedy and was implemented in Boston in the 1990s. However, after initial success, the murder rate rose again.

Some say this was because the community strands were not given enough prominence and that Boston police were too focused on enforcement.

That’s kind. They’ve changed their tune though, now they just want to ask politely when they show up armed at your door ready to conduct a warrant-less search in your home.