A legal expert is urging shops to get clued up on knife sale laws to help keep the streets safe while avoiding hefty fines.
The Chronicle reported earlier this month how courts were getting guidance for dealing with businesses and individuals that sell knives to kids, for the first time.
In what was hailed as a step forward in the fight against the country’s deadly blade epidemic, the Sentencing Council published guidelines which could see large organisations fined up to £1m if they fail to ensure blades are not sold to under-18s.
The move came after three North East teenagers were stabbed to death in less than four months, and was welcomed by victims' families and knife crime campaigners.
The new guidelines come into force on April 1.
And now one law expert is advising businesses to make sure they are ready.
Ashley Borthwick, a lawyer at international law firm Womble Bond Dickinson (WBD), which has a base in Newcastle city centre, has urged businesses to check up to date guidance relating to age restricted sales, particularly for online sales, review underage sales policies and procedures for both in stores and online, and refresh staff training.
Retailers are also advised to regularly carry out routine checks to ensure that underage sales policies and procedures are being followed
A spokeswoman for WBD said: "The most significant change for retailers is that the level of fine will directly relate to their gross turnover. For example, the suggested range of fine for retailers with a turnover of £50 million or more, is between £200,000 and £1 million, in the most serious circumstances where appropriate measures were not in place to prevent underage sales from happening.
"Individuals may also be prosecuted and could potentially face a community order or, in the most serious cases, a fine of up to 700% of their relevant weekly income."
"It is unlawful to sell knives to under 18s either in stores or online, unless you took all reasonable precautions and exercised all due diligence to avoid doing so."
The two new guidelines, apply to organisations and individuals who fail to ensure that adequate safeguards are in place to prevent the sale of knives to under-18s either in-store or online.
For the first time, magistrates’ courts will have specific guidelines for sentencing for this offence, which is prosecuted by Trading Standards.
The Sentencing Council says the guidelines will ensure that courts take a consistent approach to sentencing the offence.
Organisations can already be handed fines ranging from £500 to £1m, depending on the turnover of the business.
While individuals can face a range of non-custodial sentences, if convicted of the offence.
Following consultation on the guidelines, the Sentencing Council has also made changes to the factors that can make the offence more serious to reflect the different safeguarding measures that may be appropriate in different retailing situations.
It has also revised its guidance to make sure previous convictions of businesses are also relevant in sentencing.
The guidance previously related only to individual offender’s past convictions.
The guidelines have been welcomed by Alison Madgin, whose 18-year-old daughter Samantha was killed by 15-year-old Jordon Jobson in Wallsend in 2007.
But the 57-year-old, who has since devoted her life to raising awareness of the danger of carrying knives, fears more needs to be done to stop young people carrying blades.
She said: “I think it’s great that they are taking action and making people responsible for their businesses, but the trouble is kids can get knives from anywhere. They can just take it out a drawer in the kitchen.
“But this is one step forward.
“Any knife that can be taken off the streets is a good thing, and this is one way of keeping them off the streets.”
Earlier this month the Chronicle launched its Stop Knives Taking Lives campaign. Backed by police, politicians and victims’ families, we are calling on everyone in the North East to come together to help tackle knife crime.
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