Working Together

Officers from South Yorkshire Police have paid tribute to Mothers Against Violence campaigner Pat Regan, who was found stabbed to death at an address in Leeds.

Hundreds of people attended a service to remember the local campaigner who touched so many lives, including the police officers that worked with her.  

Pat began a crusade to end gun crime after her son, Danny, was shot dead in Liverpool in December 2002.

As part of this work, she joined forces with South Yorkshire Police last year to help launch our Guns And Knives Take Lives campaign with the premiere of a special DVD at a Sheffield school.

And only last month she spoke to hundreds of ethnic minority students at an Inspiring Youth Conference run by South Yorkshire Police in Sheffield.

Said Deputy Chief Constable Bob Dyson: "Pat will be sadly missed. She's worked tirelessly to tackle gun and knife crime.  

"She's been a real supporter of the force and it's a tragedy to see her life ended in such a way."

DCC Dyson attended May's conference at the Sheffield Wednesday ground and last year's campaign launch at Firth Park Community Arts College, where part of the initiative's `Game Over' DVD was filmed.

Pat moved some of the college's teenage students to tears as she stood up and told her heart-breaking story.

A day later, she took the DVD and information on the Guns And Knives Take Lives campaign to Downing Street where she joined the then Prime Minister Tony Blair, senior politicians, community leaders and police for a top-level gun crime summit.

DCC Dyson said Pat's ability to communicate with people at all levels was among her strengths.

"She was very down to earth and could communicate with young people in a way they could associate with," he continued.

"Her name will live on as a result of this and the work she has undertaken will have a lasting impact."

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Star basketball players teamed up with police in South Yorkshire for a weekend of activities to persuade young people to shoot hoops not guns.

Officers from the firearms unit took centre court to talk about gun and knife crime at a basketball tournament organised by ex-England player Mike Baptiste.  

Youth-related firearms incidents have halved in South Yorkshire in the year to March 2008 but work is continuing to pursue those few offenders intent on making life a misery for others.

Mike got involved with setting up the Street2Elite event after realising it was his busy training schedule that saved him from a life of crime on the estate where he grew up in London.

In a bid to get more young people involved with organised sports - and away from crime - some of the county’s best players showcased their skills to a packed audience over two-days at Ponds Forge, Sheffield.

This is the first time that the tournament, hosted by MTV presenter Kat B, has been held outside London since it was established four years ago to tackle gun crime.

Said South Yorkshire Police Detective Superintendent Adrian Teague: "This was a fantastic opportunity to be positive about young people at a time of understandable national concern about violence and youth crime.

“The truth is that many young people make the right choices in life, supported by parents, teachers and inspirational role models such as Mike.  

“We want to help keep these young people safe and we can do this by making sure they understand carrying a gun or knife will increase their chances of being hurt.”

Players visited secondary schools to help students with their basketball skills in the run-up to the event on Saturday, May 31 and Sunday, June 1.

The tournament featured big names like rapper Kano and off court, local dancers and musical artists entertained the audience.

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CRUSADER Pat Regan knows the tragic cost of gun crime only too well.

Her son, Danny, was shot dead in Liverpool in December 2002.

Since then the West Yorkshire mum has been campaigning to put an end to gun crime – hopefully saving others from the heartbreak she has had to experience.

Pat, who set up her own organisation – Mothers Against Violence, Leeds – has also lent her support to the Guns And Knives Take Lives initiative.

She attended the launch of the campaign’s DVD at a Sheffield school - just 24 hours before she joined the Prime Minister, senior politicians, community leaders and police for a top-level Downing Street summit on the issue of gun crime.

And what she had to say at Firth Park Community Arts College, where part of the DVD was filmed, moved some of the teenage members of her audience to tears.

But the emotionally-charged event also took its toll on Pat, with Danny’s name among four real-life victims of gun crime to be featured on gravestones in the DVD.

“I sat there and I wanted to cry and I’ve still got a lump in my throat,” confessed Pat as she stood up to tell her story.

“I lost my son four years ago and unfortunately he lay dead for three days before he was found.

“I don’t know what it’s like to feel the impact of a bullet, but I felt like I’d been hit by a cannonball when I got that knock at the door to tell me, `Pat, he’s dead.’ It just blew me off my doorstep.

“There are no winners when someone is killed or hurt through gun and knife crime. Families get hurt on both sides.

Work Together

“We all need to work together to stop this happening, but the most important thing is education.

“These guys carrying guns as fashion accessories are no better than anyone else and kids who reckon to have knives for their own protection should realise that the weapon might be used against them. Nobody’s invincible.

“And it’s just as important to speak up,” she stressed, “because lives are at risk.”

Appealing directly to pupils in the audience, Pat said: “If anyone in your school is carrying weapons you have a duty to really tell someone – your teacher. You might be saving your own life, your teacher’s or a friend’s life.”

The silence…followed by spontaneous applause at the end of Pat’s speech was proof that her words had not fallen on deaf ears.

In March 1996, a disgraced former scout leader shot dead 16 children and their teacher and wounded others in a primary school gym at the small Scottish town of Dunblane – before turning one of his four guns on himself.

Mick North, whose daughter Sophie was among those killed, texted the following message of support for the Guns And Knives Take Lives campaign.

“I want to offer my support to the DVD and wish everyone involved success.

“My daughter and 15 of her classmates and their teacher were killed by a man who thought it was good owning guns.

“But guns are too easy to misuse with terrible results. Let’s keep away from them.

“Good luck.”

Mick North, Sophie’s dad.