US 'supercop' Bill Bratton warns riot arrests not only answerCommunities cannot "arrest their way out" of gang crime, the prime minister's new crime adviser, US "supercop" Bill Bratton, has warned.
The former New York and Los Angeles police chief is to meet David Cameron next month to discuss how to tackle violence on England's city streets.
About 1,600 people have been arrested after days of riots, arson and looting.
Mr Bratton said arrest was appropriate for the most violent, but the issue was one for society as a whole.
"You can't arrest your way out of the problem," he told US broadcaster, ABC.
"Arrest is certainly appropriate for the most violent, the incorrigible, but so much of it can be addressed in other ways and it's not just a police issue, it is in fact a societal issue.
"It's not easy, it's hard work, but it can be done and in many respects you have to argue that it must be done because you just can't continue the way you've been going."
"My assignment is to focus more on the issues of the American experience dealing with gangs and what we may be able to share with them that might help them to prevent similar activities in the future."
Over the past two decades, Mr Bratton has gained a reputation for introducing bold measures to reduce crime, particularly in LA after riots in 1992.
"Our success in Los Angeles in reducing gang violence significantly was a co-ordination of very assertive tough police tactics but also a lot of community outreach, a lot of creative, innovative programmes such as a significant use of gang interventionists."
He's a cop, but he never had to fight so hard as against other cops.
