Monday, 21 March 2011

Police 'failed' victim of yobs


A vulnerable man who died after suffering years of torment by yobs was partly failed by senior police along with a string of other organisations, watchdogs have ruled.

The Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) report said local police officers were dedicated in dealing with the problems of David Askew, 64, and his family, showing "real concern" and working when off duty to help tackle those responsible but that Greater Manchester Police's (GMP) overall handling of the problem identified "higher level systemic failures" within the force.

Mr Askew, who had learning difficulties, his brother and elderly mother, Rose, were plagued for years by yobs on the sprawling council estate in Hattersley, Tameside, calling police 88 times between January 2004 and March 2010, the IPCC report said.

Mr Askew, 64, collapsed and died on March 10 last year after an incident when youths had reportedly thrown a wheelie bin around and tampered with his mother's mobility scooter. He was later found to have died of natural causes.

The local authority, Tameside Council, local NHS services and the Contour Housing Trust, owners of the Askew family home, all came in for criticism, with all taking the "easier route" in regarding Mr Askew as "part of the problem" rather than tackling the perpetrators, the IPCC report said. Read more here

22 comments:

The Old Bill Are Political said...

Like the police, fail to protect most communities from crime.
The police are not a policing force. But the arm of the Labour Mafia here in Tameside.

tonydj said...

from TMBC website 2008, when poor Mr Askew was in the midst of his persecution:-

Deputy - Personal and Community Services Brief
The Deputy is responsible for all matters relating to the Council's affairs in respect of the personal and community services brief.....

......Terms of Reference
To have overall responsibility for;
general social services policy and provision
liaison with NHS Trusts and health authorities
networking of groups, elderly and children
learning disability service
home care services........

http://replay.waybackmachine.org/20080404005621/http://www.tameside.gov.uk/profile/deputy/personal

AT THE TIME THIS JOB WAS HELD BY CLLR JOHN TAYLOR (LABOUR; DUKINFIELD)

But he was more concerned with the BNP and doggy-poo!

Anonymous said...

Yes! And Taylor was more concerned, at that time, with meeting the head of a well know criminal family from Hyde.

Frank Castle said...

As long as the police and judicial system continue to treat scum like this as 'clients' and 'service users', and offences like this as 'incidents' and a 'societal' problem things will get worse.
The solution is the re-instatement of personal responsibility, accountability and PUNISHMENT.

GMP one of the worst performing forces in country said...

Tameside Police always fail people.
That's why GMP are one of the worst performing forces in the country.

They have'nt got that honour for nothing you know!

Cost Cutting Conservative said...

This is a very sad case where the authorities have failed a vulnerable man. It's sickening to see that Tameside Council thought that David Askew, a victim of crime was rather the problem.

We see too much of the council, police and housing associations turning a blind eye to this sort of business, but they are more than happy to pat each other on the back for some crazy scheme like walk leaders and diversity champions.

What we need is a council that looks after its residents and gets back to basics.

Tameside Citizen said...

*comments deleted*

Come on folks - let’s keep it civil. Remember a vulnerable man lost his life in this tragedy.

RW said...

The police claimed at the time, that, David brought the trouble on to himself.

Anonymous said...

It's the same story with that guy killed by yobs in Hyde Godley.
Those responsible for that vile killing, had a string of convictions for yob behaviour.

The Police Don't Care said...

RIP David.

Whem this lad was attacked on the Huddersfield Narrow Canal.
The police, could not even be bothered to investigate the violent crime/attack.

Carry on constable said...

If he'd been homosexual or non-white it would have been classed as a hate crime and received top priority.
If the police get two calls, one reporting a man being beaten to death by violent drunks of the same race, and one reporting a man being called a puff, they must be in a real quandary about which to prioritise. Exaggerated but emphasises the lunacy that has overtaken the modern police.
It should be: Nature of the offence first, social classification of people involved a distant last.

NCB said...

Last December I was leafleting for the BNP in Bagley during a by-election there. We had just finished our leafleting session and we were walking down a main road when a car pulled up beside us with 3 men inside. The driver was black, the front seat passenger was Asian or mixed race, and the guy in the back was black. The Asian wound his window down, poked his head out and said, "if you ever come around here again we'll f***ing kill you". At this point the one in the back got out of the car and waved a knife at us and said, "let's waste them right now". We then made a quick getaway.

Now about 10 minutes later I called the police and an officer showed up after about 1/2 an hour. I told the officer what had happened and he was very keen to apprehend the guy with the knife. He took down all my details and asked to see the leaflet that we had been distributing (at this stage he didn't know we were from the BNP). The leaflet was actually a Christmas card with a calendar on the back.It said simply: 'Happy Xmas from the BNP' next to an image of the virgin Mary. On the back was a calendar.
Here's where it got surreal because once the copper saw the letters 'BNP' on the card, his whole persona changed. "Well what do you expect", he said. "If you received a happy Eid card from al-quaeda you wouldn't like it would you?". So I said, "No, but I wouldn't use a knife to threaten the person who posted it". And the officer said, "but the point is: you wouldn't like it". He then drove off leaving me stranded and fearing I may bump into the 3 thugs in the car.

Now a close friend of mine is a serving police officer in Tameside. He said had it been the other way around, ie, a BNP activist threatening an Asian with a knife in similar circumstances, GMP would have deployed helicopters and put up roadblocks to track down the offender.

Reimer said...

It all serves to compound my impression of Post-Modern Plod as corpulent, Marxoid scum with the physique, vacant character and moral seriousness of jelly. I used to be deeply shocked when I heard of physical attacks upon coppers (my old man was one for 30 years) - not any more.

labour til i die said...

Give us his name nobsock and i will make sure he gets the sack. Coppers are not allowed to assosiate with criminals and fascists are criminals so he deserves sacking.

Anonymous said...

Blimey...if LTID's threats are characteristic of Tameside Labour then the Mugabe-isation of the borough is more entrenched than even I thought.

Mike, gone and forgotten said...

Labour 'til I die, if you or your nearest and dearest were threatened with a knife because you were a Labour candidate you wouldn't make such pathetic and infantile comments.

Homo sapiens said...

Geordieland has been liberated.

No BNP candidates on Tyneside this May (every seat contested last year).

Anonymous said...

Above why post that story on this page of David.
Show some respect.

Cost Cutting Conservative said...

Councillor John Taylor who was the cabinet deputy for Personal and Community Services along with the director, Stephanie Butterworth should resign from their positions. Not only have we this tragic incident where a man died, but this week it has emerged that the two signed a contract with Meridian Care paying £16,000 a week in empty beds. That's just under £900,000 a year. The contract was signed in 2007, so that means £3.6m has been wasted.

Before you start it was the TaxPayers' Alliance that uncovered it, it was indeed the left wing BBC.

These are just two incidents which have received public attention. It makes you wonder what is going on behind closed doors. And yet the Audit Commission heaps praise on Tameside's Adult Social Care. It seems to me that Tameside is trying to pull the wool over our eyes. It's about time those responsible are shown the door.

Safe seat said...

Labour voting Geordie speak:
'Eeeh, I smurk tabs and vote fuckin' Labour me. Nae matta fuckin' what. 'Coz am so fuckin' thick I can't think forr meself. An' if I didna I mightn't get me fuckin' Giroo'

Kate Rusby - My Young Man said...

RIP David.

SerpentSlayer said...

A victim of liblabcons blind eye to the liberal values that have made childrearing a part time job for many of the overwight peasants that populate our major cities.

Had these scrotes had a decent male role model or better yet a rope this man would not have been harrassed for so long and his and his families lives made hell.

I hope the red communists who man our councils (sometimes at least)understand that they are aiding and abetting neglect of our nations moral standards.