The Police aren't just a uniform -a video
A privately made short video, which is captioned:
Quote:
A short video reminding the public of the varied and challenging work of the British Police Service following the recent horrendous changes to the conditions of service, in the hope of also reminding people that the Police aren't just a uniform.
Link:http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature...&v=IyO1WURjHLI
I know a number of SWC members and readers are law enforcement in the USA and a few other places as well, so you may recognise many of the situations.
Two dead police officers 20 months after - lessons learnt
To hear 'Officers short, officers shot, get an ambulance' when you are a leader is hard.
Quote:
On 18 September 2012, Constables Nicola Hughes and Fiona Bone, two Greater Manchester Police officers, were killed by Dale Cregan in a gun (32 shots) and grenade attack while responding to a report of a burglary in Greater Manchester, England. The incident was the first in Great Britain in which two female police officers were killed on duty.
Link:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murder_...and_Fiona_Bone
This week the officers local commander, Chief Superintendent Nick Adderley, spoke at the annual Police Federation conference (for US readers similar to the PBA and not a trade union) for just less than fifty minutes on what happened that day and what lessons he learnt, as a professional leader.
It is hard in places, when he asks 'Did I do enough as commander?' It is a painful and positive legacy - with some staff still affected. 'There is no blueprint' for afterwards; noteworthy as he had ten years Army service and twenty-two years as a police officer.
Quite a lot there to absorb. There's plenty of humour, a little "blue" language, sadness and pride. Yes it is a British situation, responding to this situation is sadly (almost) universal.
Updated June 2015 the cited video is no longer readily found. This is the most comprehensive account I can find now:http://www.policemag.co.uk/editions/..._quitting.aspx
UK report: Tough enforcement does not lower drug use
Today's Home Office evidencce-based report concludes that tough drug enforcement does not decrease use of illegal drugs and one reviewer has remarked:
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It is the most significant report on drugs the British government has published for 40 years.
Drugs policy is not my area of interest, but I noted the references to the long term reduction internationally in drug use. The same reviewer adds
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No-one is entirely sure why the decline is happening, although it is thought it could be linked to the decreasing popularity of smoking. Cannabis makes up the lion's share of illicit drug use and some experts believe the drug has declined in popularity, like tobacco, because smoking itself is increasingly seen as unfashionable. As cannabis rates fall, they drag down general drug use rates.
Link to report, 59 pgs:https://www.gov.uk/government/upload...omparators.pdf
The cited review:http://www.politics.co.uk/blogs/2014...es-not-lower-d
The BBC:http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-29824764
Now whether this report has any impact is unclear. Very few were in the House of Commons today for a debate, although several Conservatives spoke in favour of reform.
British Policing (catch all)
Police officers whether British or not have often been the target of 'lone wolves' and planned terrorist attacks. It has become a "hot" topic within the police here as rumour, press reports and some obscure internal warnings cause concern:http://retiredandangry.wordpress.com...y-chris-hobbs/
An ex-London officer has written a column, it opens with:
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Circulating on the police grapevine are alarming accounts which suggest that both police officers and PCSO’s have been recently subject to ‘hostile reconnaissance’ in the vicinity of police stations when off duty travelling to or from work.
Police have every reason to be anxious: Just last month five men were arrested in conjunction with a plot that featured Shepherds Bush Police Station in West London. Images of two police officers and two PCSO’s were recovered during that investigation.
The author has some good thoughts on 'protect the protectors'. I wonder if any police leader will respond.
Mistakes, lies and more: 96 people died
In April 1989 @ Hillsborough soccer ground ninety-six Liverpool FC supporters died in a crowd crush and this week after a two-year long coroner's inquest it was determined by the jury:
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The inquest’s verdict, when it finally arrived, represented the most thorough vindication imaginable for the families of the dead and an equally damning indictment of South Yorkshire Police. The jury supplanted the 1991 verdict with one of unlawful killing, laying blame squarely on the police in the process.
The disaster, let alone this week's verdict, has always aroused passion and controversy.
This article is the best description I've read this week:http://www.theguardian.com/football/...lasted-decades
The local police force, South Yorkshire, now faces an uncertain future and civil legal action is likely - against them and the West Midlands who conducted a post-match investigation.
The part played by 'police culture' is presented by an academic and a former Met Police Commissioner in this short article (a good part of which I disagree with):http://blogs.lse.ac.uk/politicsandpo...-cop-culture/?
Policing and Public Confidence
In March I attended a small conference @ Warwick University, for a conference Policing and Public Confidence:
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It brought together a diverse group of researchers, policing professionals, and people from the world of policy. Each has an interest in understanding relationships between the police and the publics they serve.
Videos are now available for each session:http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/fac/soc/wb...vents-features
This summer is the 35th anniversary of the Brixton riots @ London and the 5th anniversary of another, wider bout of rioting.
Rather unusually IMHO both establishment and critical voices were heard, without rancour and it included some surprises - notably Det. Insp. Hart on Confidence and Threats to Life, whose research found there was no evidence for the methods being used:
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There is no structured teaching in key-decision making roles in the police on 'threats to life' incidents. My experience is that threats to life incidents are looked at very subjectively, and massively different to the people we interviewed.
Army could be brought in to patrol the streets, warn police leaders
http://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/uknews...ers/ar-BBt5qvb
Quote:
The Government has announced plans to recruit 1,500 extra firearms officers in the wake of the Paris and Brussels terror attacks. But there are already at least 300 vacancies across England and Wales as numbers of authorised officers have fallen to the lowest level for seven years.
Mr White said: "Before we even start talking about recruiting the extra 1,500, we are struggling to fill the vacancies we have currently got because of the lack of understanding and protection that officers would have if they have to discharge their firearm.
The man accused of starting the 2011 riots – and what he did next
An interesting article about the man and a film made now. I am not sure about the motivation here.
It is now five years since the mainly English urban rioting, which started in Tottenham, north London. Nearby is the Broadwater Farm Estate, where in 1985 another bout of rioting started.
A big "take away":
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No police came. It just escalated. It just got worse and worse until the riot police came out there trying to clear the streets. You’ve got angry people trying to fight back. That lasted for about 13 hours.
Link:https://www.theguardian.com/society/...ts-mark-duggan
A worried, even frightened 'thin Blue Line'
Chris Hobbs is a retired London police officer who has an irregular column on policing and other law enforcement issues. His latest column is entitled 'Dallas, Nice, Baton Rouge, Munich: The UK’s Emaciated Blue Line Braces'.
A "taster":
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Make no mistake, every single officer in this country, most of whom perform duties unarmed, would be mentally rehearsing their actions if and indeed when, they are confronted with similar scenarios in our cities, towns and resorts. Their collective view is perhaps summed by the legendary serving police blogger ‘Inspector Gadget’ who tweeted; “UK cops watching armed police on Sky News rushing to contain the Munich scene thinking what in God’s name would we do here.“
See:http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/chri..._11207372.html
Arm the Met Police: asking the officers
Policing in London is quite different to the rest of the UK, including other big cities and with so many armed incidents, plus the threat of attack, Metropolitan Police officers have long argued - without success - that they should all be armed.
Now their professional body, not a trade union, is holding a ballot:
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Questions being put to officers in the survey include:
- Whether they would want to carry a Taser or firearm at all times while on duty
- If they think there should be more firearms officers in London
- If the thought of carrying a gun would make them leave the job
Link:http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-38547203
Within is this, which I'd not spotted before:
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But a recent poll in the wake of the Berlin Christmas market attacks found 58% of the public believed officer should carry guns.
Actually the cited polling was after the Paris 2015 attacks!;)
UK Armed Policing: Authorised Professional Practice
The British Police Service have always had an official set of documents on armed policing. I had missed a good part of those policies are now in the public domain; in a document from the College of Policing and known as APP (Authorised Professional Practice):http://www.app.college.police.uk/app...rmed-policing/
From the introduction:
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This module provides:
- guidance on the appropriate issue and use of firearms and related less lethal options within the police service.
- a basis for the training of all relevant police staff in matters relating to the operational use of firearms. This includes command issues at strategic, tactical and operational levels.
- guidance on command structures, tactical options and operational issues associated with the deployment of Authorised Firearms Officers
A significant contributor to the APP is Simon Chesterman, his slim bio states:
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Simon Chesterman QPM has been in the police service for 33 years. He is currently the Deputy Chief Constable of the Civil Nuclear Constabulary. He is a firearms commander and part of the national counter terrorist command cadre, and has been the National Police Chief's Council lead for armed policing for approaching nine years.
He has written an article 'The police we need: Armed police officers and the use of lethal force', currently available to view on a small website, after free registration on ' an e-newsletter 'Policing Insight' (not run by the police service):https://policinginsight.com/opinion/...-lethal-force/
Post 15 on the main UK Policing thread refers to the latest developments in London, a vote by serving officers on whether to be armed:http://council.smallwarsjournal.com/...ad.php?t=21459
A previous APP on Undercover Policing had 4,489 views:http://council.smallwarsjournal.com/...ad.php?t=24129