THE RISKS

The punishments for carrying a knife are harsher than ever.

One in three people convicted of a knife crime go to jail, so it’s worth knowing what you can be sent down for and for how long.

 

This could get you a life sentence

  • Injuring someone with a knife
  • Murder

 

This could get you 4 years in jail

  • Carrying a knife
  • Threatening someone with a knife

 

Carrying a knife can just get you a fine. But it can also get you expelled from school and makes it much harder to get a job.

If it’s just for protection, it’s just as dangerous.

The real risk is using your knife without meaning to. It’s how a lot of injuries and murders happen. You get into a fight and before you know it, you’ve used your knife on the other guy or they’ve used it on you.

 

If you carry a knife, there’s a good chance that you’ll be the one who gets stabbed.

 

What a knife wound can lead to

  • Brain damage
  • Deformity
  • Life in a wheelchair
  • Gangrene
  • Having a leg or arm amputated

 

The average ambulance response time is twice as long as it takes to bleed to death.

Now for the big one, you could die. It happens easily. If a knife punctures an artery or a major organ, you can bleed to death in minutes.

 

For every stabbing there are many victims.

 

What a knife crime can lead to

  • A lad stabs someone
  • He goes to jail
  • His little brother gets bullied by the victim’s mates
  • So he carries a knife for protection


If you’re thinking about carrying a knife, it’s worth giving a thought to everyone that could get hurt.

If you have concerns about knife crime or would like more information or advice, you can get in touch with:

Crimestoppers
An independent UK-wide charity working to stop crime. Crimestoppers provides an ‘anonymous' hotline for people who wish to provide information about crime or criminals without fear of retribution or exposure. All you need to do is call 0800 555 111.

ChildLine
The UK’s free, confidential helpline for children and young people. Trained volunteers are on hand to provide advice and support, by phone and online, 24 hours a day. Children can talk to ChildLine in confidence on 0800 11 11 or via the website at www.childline.org.uk.