Police view of U.K. gangs outdated

MANCHESTER, England, April 2 (UPI) -- British police have an "outdated and stereotypical" grasp on the way gangs operate, researchers at the University of Manchester said.

The findings are based on a close study of six gangs over a three-year period.

Dr. Judith Aldridge, from the university's school of law and one of the authors of the study, said some individuals were assumed to be in gangs simply because of where they live.

"The policing of gangs is based on an outdated assumption that the ones in most need of policing are territorial, street-based entities," she said in a synopsis posted on the school's Web site.

Researchers found graffiti tagging traditionally viewed as an indicator of gang territory wasn't considered as important by gang members themselves.

Further, gang names were often created by investigators before being adopted by the supposed groups themselves, the study concluded.

Street-corner congregations among such criminals, the study found, are also being replaced with communication over the Internet, even as police continue to target public gatherings, often drawing incorrect assumptions.