Children caught throwing snowballs are being recorded as ‘serious violence crimes’ by confused police officers.
Six incidents were logged in the same category as murder or using a weapon to inflict injury by the Greater Manchester force during the cold snap in January.
Officers admit to being baffled about how record log government crime statistics, resulting in the blunder, despite no arrests being made and no one being injured.
Innocent fun: But police have been recording snowball throwing as violent crimes
It is thought they assumed a snowball should be regarded as a weapon if it is thrown at someone.
Chief Constable Peter Fahy cited the incidents as he lambasted his own officers for over-recording incidents of crime.
He said many officers at GMP were not applying common sense and were 'too cautious' in their work.
But he added that some were confused by the regulations and were 'caught up in bureaucracy'.
Mr Fahy said: ‘People do not feel they are trusted to make a common sense decision. Common sense says throwing a snowball is not a violent crime.
‘But the culture at GMP is to play safe so if you record it as violent crime, [the officer thinks] no one will criticise me.’
Mr Fahy revealed the snowball crime statistics to astonished councillors at a meeting of the Greater Manchester Police Authority.
Baffled: Confused police officers in Manchester are wrongly logging snowball fights as serious crimes
Cllr Susan Williams described the logging of snowball throwing as violent crime as 'loony'.
She told the meeting: ‘We seem to have gone the way of madness if this is being classed as serious violent crime.’
Paul Murphy, chairman of the Police Authority, said he failed to see how snowball throwing could be mistaken for a serious crime and questioned the force's recording of incidents.
He added: ‘I'm so disappointed that a force the size of Greater Manchester is getting mixed up between kids throwing snowballs and serious violent crime.’
Mr Fahy responded that he was trying to change the culture at GMP which had led to the over-recording of crime, but admitted it was a 'challenge'.
Assistant Chief Constable Terry Sweeney said: ‘The guidelines surrounding serious violent crime are difficult to interpret.
‘The category using objects to endanger lives is designed for situations where someone is on a motorway and throwing a paving slab down - everyone would agree that's very dangerous.
‘Most members of the public in Greater Manchester would say snowball throwing is not serious violent crime - it's just kids being silly - but the rules are confusing and officers are told to record what's reported.
‘It's a technical issue but if people see serious violent crime going up - because of incidents like this - then that's a worry.’
Between November 2008 and October 2009 there were 52,934 incidents of serious violent crime logged by Greater Manchester Police.
A spokesman confirmed that nobody had been arrested for snowball throwing.
A Home Office spokesman said: ‘The government is committed to the integrity of crime statistics - the public and the government expects crime to be tackled and that our performance is measurable.
‘We give clear guidelines to police forces on what constitutes a violent crime and we know following a report by Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary last year that the majority of forces are performing well.
We keep our guidance under constant review and continue to work with the Association of Chief Police Officers and other government departments where necessary.’
