Overview
- Makes a timely contribution to the high-profile issue of County Lines
- Draws on unique ethnographic data
- Analyses the policing styles, tactics and methods put in place to respond to County Lines
- Theoretically considers ‘symbolic policing’ and the application of harm reduction principles to drugs policing
Part of the book series: Palgrave Studies in Risk, Crime and Society (PSRCS)
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About this book
The County Lines phenomenon has become one of the most significant drug market developments in the UK over recent years. This book analyses how it is being responded to by the police in affected provincial areas. Drawing on unique ethnographic fieldwork, it takes readers into police stations and out onto the streets with officers, providing timely insight into the policing of this high profile and challenging drug market context. The book considers the use of new police tactics that have been proposed and familiar methods that officers regularly embarked on. Through a sophisticated theoretical framework it argues that the policing of County Lines can often be considered ‘symbolic’, with concerns regularly placed on sending out strong messages that appear superficial when closely examined. Alongside this, however, there appears to be a progressive shift towards a more pragmatic drugs policing approach that embraces harm reduction principles.This cutting-edge research speaks to academics in Criminology and Policing, and to practitioners and policy makers.
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Keywords
Table of contents (9 chapters)
Reviews
“Bringing a wealth of detail and clarity to the study of this topic, Spicer invites the reader … . Spicer cultivates a rich insight into his own experiences of the ethnographic process, valuable to both those embarking on early experiences of fieldwork and those seeking to contextualize the book’s substantive insights. … Overall, the book makes a valuable contribution to the literature on county lines and policing. Spicer invites us to examine … with a pragmatic, critical eye.” (Hannah Marshall, The British Journal of Criminology, Vol. 62 (2), 2022) “Policing County Lines is a tour de force for understanding the intricacies of this evolving phenomenon and provides the reader with admirable insight into its origins, the fuller context in which it operates and the ways forward for future policing approaches and wider management partnerships. A must read for anyone wanting to understand complexity around policing in the current age” (Ross Coomber, Professor of Criminology and Sociology, University of Liverpool, UK)
“Jack Spicer makes an original and valuable contribution to the growing literature on county lines drug dealing in particular and, more generally, the literature on drug markets, drug policy, organised crime, policing and criminology. Spicer subjects an impressive 14 months of ethnographic fieldwork to well-balanced and rigorous analysis. The book offers valuable insights into how the county lines drug supply model operates, and is understood by law enforcement, while exploring how a harm reduction framework can limit drug market harms. This impressive book is essential reading for anyone interested in drug markets, drug policy, policing, organised crime and gangs” (James Windle, Lecturer of Criminology, University College Cork, Ireland)
“Jack Spicer’s book is a thoroughly engaging, enlightening and enjoyable read that makes an original and important contribution to the literature on policing, drug markets and drug policy, as well as criminology and criminal justice more generally. It is beautifully written, deserves a wide readership and will be of interest to academics, policymakers and practitioners working in these areas. If you only read one book on County Lines, make it this one” (Matthew Bacon, Lecturer of Criminology, University of Sheffield, UK)
Authors and Affiliations
About the author
Jack Spicer is Lecturer in Criminology at UWE, Bristol, UK. His research interests include the functioning of illicit drug markets, drug law enforcement and drug policy. In 2019 he was awarded “Best Early Career Researcher” by the International Society for the Study of Drug Policy.
Bibliographic Information
Book Title: Policing County Lines
Book Subtitle: Responses To Evolving Provincial Drug Markets
Authors: Jack Spicer
Series Title: Palgrave Studies in Risk, Crime and Society
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-54193-4
Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan Cham
eBook Packages: Law and Criminology, Law and Criminology (R0)
Copyright Information: The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2021
Hardcover ISBN: 978-3-030-54192-7Published: 21 January 2021
Softcover ISBN: 978-3-030-54195-8Due: 04 February 2022
eBook ISBN: 978-3-030-54193-4Published: 30 October 2020
Series ISSN: 2946-2517
Series E-ISSN: 2946-2525
Edition Number: 1
Number of Pages: XV, 253
Topics: Policing, Transnational Crime, Youth Offending and Juvenile Justice, Organized Crime, Social Work and Community Development, Crime Prevention