miscarriage of justice

Joint enterprise increasingly permeates policing. The Code of Practice A which governs the police use of the power to stop and search individuals in public places, requires the police to have reasonable suspicion that a person is engaging in criminal activity before that person can be searched. In the 2015 edition, section 9A extends the meaning of ‘reasonable suspicion’ that those stopped and searched might be engaged in criminal activity to suspicion that their targets might be associated with a group another member of which might commit a crime. That provision opens the possibility of a major extension of stop and search usage (which can in itself lead to major public order disturbances), and the creation of apparent criminal association at the lowest and least visible level of police activity. [...]