Cautioning and the Limits of Ethnic Monitoring

David Westwood, a Superintendent in Avon and Somerset Police, examines the findings of recent research on the links between social deprivation and crime as they relate to police cautioning and considers the likely impact of HOC 59/1990 'The Cautioning of Offenders'. He concludes that ethnic monitoring, whilst necessary to ensure fairness of treatment, is unlikely to be effective in reducing racial bias in prosecution, even though greater consistency can be achieved through a justice model of cautioning.