article_snippet: Government inspectors warned in 2013 that more than a quarter of police stop and searches were unlawful – equivalent to 250,000 of the one million people every year being subjected to searches which did not stick to the rules.
article_snippet: Legally nobody should be stopped unless there is 'reasonable suspicion' the one million people are guilty of carrying drugs, weapons or intending to commit a crime.
article_snippet: HMIC Chief Stephen Otter said: ‘Too many police leaders and officers still don't seem to understand the impact that the use of powers to stop and search people can have on the lives of many people, especially young people and those who are from black and minority ethnic backgrounds.
article_snippet: He said fury about unfair and disproportionate stop and searches was ‘one trigger for major disorder’.
article_snippet: A survey of more than 12,000 police officers found more than a third of police officers felt under pressure to carry out fewer stop and searches .
article_snippet: ‘institutionally racist’ over the murder of London student Stephen Lawrence in an attack in 1993, officers were not using stop and search ‘effectively and fairly after all this time’.
article_snippet: ’ HMIC Chief Stephen Otter said: ‘Too many police leaders and officers still don't seem to understand the impact that the use of powers to stop and search' A survey of more than 12,000 police officers found that more than a third felt under pressure to carry out fewer stop and searches, while a quarter said the use of powers to stop and search' A survey of more than 12,000 police officers were under pressure to stop using the power entirely.
article_snippet: The study also found that a ‘small minority’ of officers were arresting people in order to search people
article_snippet: so people avoided the ‘increased scrutiny’ of stop and search powers, HMIC said.
article_snippet: ‘Stop and search is an important part of policing.
article_snippet: The Home Office launched a best use of stop and search scheme last year, which was part of a range of measures aimed at slashing the overall use of the controversial practice.