Acid attacks.

[Chippy_Tea]

What percentage of these attacks have been carried out by people under the age of 18?

They should have made it compulsory the buyer (whatever age) has to provide their name and address and a record should be kept.

They should also make the punishment fit the crime if you deliberately disfigure another person in my opinion the punishment should be more severe than if you had stabbed them.

Acid attacks: Retailers sign up to voluntary ban on acid sales

Some of the UK's largest retailers have agreed to voluntarily stop sales of acids to customers under 18 years old.

A number of DIY stores and supermarkets have signed up to the ban, which will apply to drain cleaners and domestic products with high acid concentrations.

The Home Office has already proposed new laws to limit the sale of corrosive substances amid continuing concern over rising numbers of acid attacks.

A fifth of acid attackers identified in 2016-17 were under 18 years old.

The proposed legislation would make it unlawful to sell the substances to under-18s, and also make it a criminal offence to be in possession of acid in a public place without good reason.

The move would bring the law for household acids and harmful chemicals that are not already subject to legal restrictions into line with crimes relating to knives.

The public consultation on that proposal, which will have to go through Parliament, closed last month.


More - http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-42585208

 

[meirion658]

Totally agree and persons who wish to purchase should have a licence to do

 

[Chippy_Tea]

I have just edited the OP to add -

They should also make the punishment fit the crime if you deliberately disfigure another person in my opinion the punishment should be more severe than if you had stabbed them.

.

 

[F00b4r]

Totally agree and persons who wish to purchase should have a licence to do

There are quite a few home brewers who use hydrochloric and sulphuric acids as CRS just isn't appropriate for their water and it gives them a fine degree of control.

 

[GerritT]

There are quite a few home brewers who use hydrochloric and sulphuric acids as CRS just isn't appropriate for their water and it gives them a fine degree of control.

So let them buy it, after showing ID at the point of sale. No online sales anymore.

 

[F00b4r]

So let them buy it, after showing ID at the point of sale. No online sales anymore.

I have no issue with that but what you suggested before was that a licence should be required and that could come with quite a financial penalty. Also online sales that eg require a credit card to the billing address only might be just as safe from abuse if not more so than just requiring ID (it leaves a much stronger paper trail).

 

[jceg316]

Trouble with getting people to register, use a credit card, supply ID etc is the vast majority of non acid attackers will go through these hoops, but if you're the type of person who has no qualms with throwing acid over another human being, then you're probably gonna find a way through these loopholes, like steal a bunch of acid, steal a credit card, or find an illegal way to obtain acid. Whilst I think these measures help make obtaining acid slightly harder and probably better in place, it's far from foolproof.

 

[Gunge]

Well it's good to see that they're on top of the situation and now have it firmly under control.

 

[LarryF]

I have just edited the OP to add -



.

I think that any injury sustained with either a knife or acid should be treated as attempted murder. How people can say that they used a knife on someone but had no intention to kill them is ridiculous, it's the same with using acid on someone and saying that what, you didn't want to disfigure them? Knife and acid crime will only be solved with appropriate sentencing but as long as sentencing is governed by the financial aspect of keeping people incarcerated violent crime will only increase.

 

[Dutto]

We need to take a good long look at the society that we have created! I'm sick to death of the knee-jerk reactions that recent politicians have come up with and "Banning the sale of corrosive substances." is one of them!

As a child under the age of thirteen I had regular access to:

o Caustic Soda. Normally used to clear drains or strip old paint. Used by me (with aluminium milk-bottle tops) to generate hydrogen; which was then used to fill balloons so that we could put a match to them and watch them blow up!

o Hydrochloric, Nitric and Sulphuric Acid. All of which were used as cleaning or polishing agents around the home and garden.

o Potassium Nitrate. Normally used as a meat preservative but also used by me as an ingredient of gunpowder.

o Rock and Powdered Sulphur. Normally burned to produce Sulphur Dioxide (a toxic and choking gas) and used as a household fumigating agent.

o Knives, Machetes and Bayonets. Used for cutting and whittling; and occasionally used in children's games such as "Splits".

o Air Rifles and Air Pistols of .177 and .22 calibre. My use of which wasn't confined to target practice!

o Home-made Catapults, Throwing Arrows, Slingshots, Winter Warmers and Bows and Arrows.

o And many more substances and items of equipment that are currently on the "banned" list.

I honestly believe that the reason their use as a "weapon" was so rare when I was a kid is that we all knew just how dangerous they could be.

Banning access to them just breeds ignorance and contempt as to what can happen if they are misused ...

... which is probably why there has been such a massive increase in the use of corrosive substances as a weapon amongst the young. (i.e. they have no idea what the consequences will be!)

 

[Dexter101]

We need to take a good long look at the society that we have created! I'm sick to death of the knee-jerk reactions that recent politicians have come up with and "Banning the sale of corrosive substances." is one of them!

As a child under the age of thirteen I had regular access to:

o Caustic Soda. Normally used to clear drains or strip old paint. Used by me (with aluminium milk-bottle tops) to generate hydrogen; which was then used to fill balloons so that we could put a match to them and watch them blow up!

o Hydrochloric, Nitric and Sulphuric Acid. All of which were used as cleaning or polishing agents around the home and garden.

o Potassium Nitrate. Normally used as a meat preservative but also used by me as an ingredient of gunpowder.

o Rock and Powdered Sulphur. Normally burned to produce Sulphur Dioxide (a toxic and choking gas) and used as a household fumigating agent.

o Knives, Machetes and Bayonets. Used for cutting and whittling; and occasionally used in children's games such as "Splits".

o Air Rifles and Air Pistols of .177 and .22 calibre. My use of which wasn't confined to target practice!

o Home-made Catapults, Throwing Arrows, Slingshots, Winter Warmers and Bows and Arrows.

o And many more substances and items of equipment that are currently on the "banned" list.

I honestly believe that the reason their use as a "weapon" was so rare when I was a kid is that we all knew just how dangerous they could be.

Banning access to them just breeds ignorance and contempt as to what can happen if they are misused ...

... which is probably why there has been such a massive increase in the use of corrosive substances as a weapon amongst the young. (i.e. they have no idea what the consequences will be!)

I get the thinking behind this but pretty sure that "the young" do know the consequences of throwing acid at people and using knives... hence why its being done.

I am a "millennial". When I was young back in the 90's/00's I had a penknife which I used to make stuff. I wouldn't have carried my knife around however I do have friends who were stabbed. My point is, you can't compare your childhood and expect that everyone was brought up like you (even if they should have been :) ) Its not an age thing. Its a personality thing.

I also think that "back in the day" knives and weapons were still used by gangs and people were still harmed for the profit of criminals. Ronnie and Reggie Cray were hardly model citizens! But we have now developed a criminal society that are using children from carrying drugs through to physical attacks.

Under 18s are used by gangs to commit these type of crimes because punishments are different and probably because its a way to prove their worth to the gang. Gang culture is not a new thing and neither is gangs being associated with crime.

I would suggest that the materialistic society we have today plays into their hands especially when dealing with young people.

I would imagine that limiting the sale of acid won't completely stop horrible attacks happening however it should at least make it more difficult and potentially make it easier to trace especially if retailers also have to be registered to sell acid.

I would love to say that we should be tackling the cause of these attacks (namely gang culture and organised crime) but the likelihood of any of this happening in the current financial climate is very much unlikely.

 

[Dutto]

...............

I would suggest that the materialistic society we have today plays into their hands especially when dealing with young people.

.............

I agree with your Post and the above brought back a fond memory of my Mum who would often say (quite truthfully) "We never even locked the doors at home when we went out."

What made me laugh was that we lived in a terrace street (I was born at number 312!) and the only things in the house of any material value were a three piece suite and an upright piano! :lol: :lol:

When I was about four a thief came into the open house and stole the only thing of any value that didn't require a truck to carry it away. I well remember my Dad going mad because the thief had taken his baccy tin full of dog-ends! :thumb::thumb:


PS

My own criminal career came to a painful and sudden end after my Mum took me to watch Pinocchio. Apparently, after seeing the film, I would cover up my nose if I ever told her a lie!

 

[EVVO]

Reading Dutto’s post above I had access to those items as well. Never did we think of using them to harm others. I often carried a sheath knife and an axe. These were things necessary for a 13 year old to carry in the woods.