BRITAIN'S GUN CRIME EPIDEMIC

With 29 out of 43 police forces seeing an increase in firearm offences, we investigate....

- ASHLEIGH PAGE

Often pegged as a US problem, gun crime is beginning to dominate UK headlines, too. From the tragic death of nine-year-old Olivia Pratt-Korbel to Emma Pattison, 45, believed to have been shot dead by her husband, it seems, despite it being illegal to possess most firearms, guns are becoming more commonplace. In fact, 29 out of the 43 police forces in England and Wales have seen an increase in gun crime, with it more than doubling in areas like South Yorkshire and Northumbria in the past 10 years. By contrast, gun crime in London has halved in that time, thanks partly to Operation Trident, the Met’s gun and gang crime unit. Now, less than a fifth of gun crime in England and Wales is committed in the capital. But with 100 illegal firearms seized in the UK each month, more needs to be done. Woman’s Own looks at the devastating impact gun crime has on many UK families…

Rhys Jones 

The last time Melanie Jones saw her son Rhys, 11, she was cradling him in her arms as he lay dying in the middle of a car park after being shot.

Rhys had been on his way home from football practice in August 2007 when he was caught in the crossfire of two rival gangs, the Strand Gang and Croxteth Crew.

Hit in the neck by a stray bullet, Rhys fell to the ground. Melanie, who was at home, rushed to his side when she heard from his football coach that he’d been shot. But it was too late. He was pronounced dead at Alder Hey Children’s Hospital.