The Independence Day assault on two Ħamrun police officers marred that day forever. A shocking free-for-all violent episode on the guardians of society disgusted everyone, even those used to the study of crime and criminality.

The raw assault left nothing to the imagination, went viral and led to a series of condemnations, opportunistic statements, and, for some, a chance to gain some political brownie points that deviated comprehension of the seriousness of the multi-male/female assault, away from the brutality of it all.

This time round, this was not a case of moral panic where statements are issued based on hearsay or conjectures: this was pure unadulterated footage that everyone could relate to: two police guardians going about their daily routine being assaulted, body slammed and mob-smashed. They fought back with the tools at hand but it was simply a numbers game with too many considerate (sic) citizens ready to lend a punch and a kick.

Societal imperative

Societal reaction was rapid, condemning and unmerciful on those involved. While still innocent until proven guilty, the public’s reaction is unforgiving and called for action. The three powers of state geared their wheels: the executive took those involved to task, the judiciary initiated proceedings and the legislative will now bear witness towards voting for legislative change.

But is there a real reason to push for such?

The raw truth is not based on conjectures but real data. Stark numbers show that, between 2004 and June 2024, there were 3,587 cases of violence against public officers, peaking in 2013 when 262 cases were registered. Removing the intangible verbal assaults that do not leave physical evidence comprised of threatening, reviling, vilifying and resisting, the rest are stark physical assaults, the latter amounting to 1,775 cases during that period. Even one offence is uncalled for, let alone such numbers.

Zooming in on the past 10 years, one can elicit that from a peak of 175 physical assaults in 2013, this number has stabilised to an annual average of 45 cases since 2021, a 75 per cent drop in cases. From one physical assault every two days, this has gone rapidly down to one case every eight days.

Is it enough? No, as each case is brutal and officers are injured. How many other disciplines, inclusive of professionals, white collar or blue collar workers, are assaulted every other day or every week? This job’s hazards are real, documented and now in full viral visual mode.

Cause and effect

What caused the cases to drop? There are various causes: a push to move more officers out of the offices and onto the street; a police transformation strategy tasked with reforming the force, now in its fourth year; community policing teams in most localities; and the 2021 introduction of body cameras.

The first three were conceived to reduce crime in the physical domain (as against the digital and private domains where crime shows increasing trends).

The assault went viral and led to a series of condemnations, opportunistic statements and a chance to gain some political brownie points- Saviour Formosa

However, the (un)surprising drop in assaults immediately the body cams were introduced in May 2021 is testament to the effect of such technologies both for the protection of citizens from police abuse and protection of the same officers from violence. Awareness that the tech is recording serves as both a deterrent and as evidence for all parties when things go south.

Many a post-Ħamrun debate ensued that the officers were not equipped properly is resultant of an easy armchair critic statement: both officers had their own type of equipment, which were used. This is a difficult nut to crack. What would the critics have gone for? Had the officers fired their firearms that resulted in a death or more, then the same critics would have been at the forefront yelling that the officers were trigger happy and citing brutality… as happened a few weeks ago in the August 11 case of Edward Johnston, whose death, incidentally, followed three hours of negotiations involving 21 officers.

Legislative operand

The Ħamrun case triggered a raw nerve. Irrespective of technology and boots-on-the-ground engagement, the call for deterrents leading to effective sanctions was pounced upon, with new tools being proposed for the judiciary to act upon. Hotheads are still prone to unsocial behaviour, thus the call for the enhancement of the legal instruments.

The quick action is laudable. Review of the legal amendments pushed by the Ministry for Home Affairs depicts significant changes on three levels: higher fines, the removal of the possibility of a suspended sentence and conditional liberty as well as increased prison sentences.

While the first might be deemed as a lesser evil deterrent during an assault, the other two sanctions could reward aggressors with a sentence of up to seven years and a fine of up to €25,000. Interestingly, the amendments distinguish between violence type, number of aggressors and means employed to commit the offence such as use of arms proper.

The short, sharp, shock wrought by the changes should serve as a positive for legislators to work together and a major wake-up call for any emergent assault ‘heroes’.

If such changes will result in the lowering of the current 45 annual assaults on public officers, then a societal step forward in safety and security would have been achieved. Stats will prove or nullify this hypothesis over the next years.

There is no out-of-jail card this time round.

Saviour Formosa is a spatial criminologist.