INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Image caption
The predictive policing software was pioneered in Los Angeles
Computer software intended
to predict where and when crimes would occur has been scrapped by a police force
Kent Police was the first force in England and Wales to introduce the "predictive policing" system in 2013.Supt John Phillips said it was
"challenging" to demonstrate whether the system had enabled police to reduce crime
Officers said the software had been "really useful" for "proactive" policing
The software, created by US firm PredPol, was introduced across the county in April 2013 after a four-month trial in Medway saw street
violence fall by 6%.It uses past trends and current information to predict when and where crime is likely to happen.Crime increased in the
first year of its use, although police admitted at the time this was because officers did not know how to use the software
Kent Police Federation chairman Chris Carter said the software was useful for "proactive" policing, but said "officers have got less time to
use it" due to increasing crime and decreasing resources
"When I was a neighbourhood inspector it was really useful to me," he said."We deployed based on the information I was given from the
system."Supt Phillips said the software "allowed officers to identify public spaces that would benefit from patrols"."While it did not
predict crime, it was used as a preventative tool and supported the force's focus at the time on neighbourhood policing," he said."The
launch of a new policing model that places victims and witnesses at its centre, has led Kent Police to evaluate alternative options which
will support a focus on both traditional and emerging crime types."Supt Phillips told the Financial Times the software had a "good record of
predicting where crimes are likely to take place," but added: "What is more challenging is to show that we have been able to reduce crime
with that information."Predpol chief executive Brian MacDonald said he viewed Kent Police as a "customer on pause" and not a "lost
