Monthly Archive for September, 2008

“Have-a-go” Tories

Published on September 30, 2008 in Uncategorized. Closed

written by PC Bloggs from PC Bloggs - a Twenty-first Century Police Officer

Apparently the Tories are going to make life easier for people who intervene in crime in good faith.

The Conservatives claim "there is evidence that the police and prosecutors are too ready to accept allegations made by criminals against people who try to apprehend them". So they want to amend the Crown Prosecution Service's code, as well as Health and Safety laws, to encourage people to "have-a-go".

This all sounds great. Except that there are already plenty of laws protecting people acting in good faith to prevent crime. Certain powers of arrest under the Serious Organised Crime and Police Act 2005 apply to the general public as well as the police. There is s.3 Criminal Law Act 1967, which enshrines the right to self-defence. There is Common Law: oodles of case law in which people acting in good faith were protected by courts.

So the law/code/H&S isn't the issue.

The fact is, the police are not "ready to accept" allegations made by criminals. We are forced to accept them by the National Crime Recording Standards, which state we must record an allegation as a crime within 24hrs of it being reported. If we then decide to file it without bringing anyone to justice for it, it will count as a negative slice of our violent crime pie chart.

This situation is the same whether the allegation is one by a criminal against someone trying to detain him, a drunk who thinks he might have been assaulted but might have just fallen down, someone trying to claim robbery to swindle the DSS out of more cash, etc. The government doesn't believe the police will investigate these claims unless we are forced to, the idea being that some genuine allegations will get dismissed in the same bundle, hence NCRS.

So it's the rules on crime-recording which need addressing.

But all that said, if the Tories think that Health and Safety law, and the fear of prosecution, are the main reasons why the public won't get involved in street crime, they need to think again:

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'Diary of an On-Call Girl' is available in some bookstores and online.

The original post can be found http://pcbloggs.blogspot.com/2008/09/have-go-tories.html

ABOUT BLOODY TIME

Published on September 30, 2008 in Uncategorized. Closed

written by Metcountymounty from Sheepdogs & Wolves

Courtesy of the BBC -

A group of retired Gurkhas fighting for the right to settle in Britain have won their immigration test case at London's High Court. They were challenging immigration rules which said that those who retired from the British Army before 1997 did not have an automatic right to stay.
Prominent supporter actress Joanna Lumley said it was a "chance to right a great wrong".
The government said it would now review all Gurkhas' cases.

'Debt of honour'

The regiment moved its main base from Hong Kong to the UK in 1997 and the government had argued that Gurkhas discharged before that date were unlikely to have strong residential ties with the UK. That meant those who wanted to settle in the UK had to apply for British residence and could be refused and deported.

The judgement could affect some 2,000 former Gurkhas who retired before 1997.

The judge, Mr Justice Blake, said the Gurkhas' long service, conspicuous acts of bravery and loyalty to the Crown all pointed to a "moral debt of honour" and gratitude felt by British people.
He ruled that instructions given by the Home Office to immigration officials were unlawful and needed urgent revision.

Lawyer Martin Howe said:

"Today we have seen a tremendous and historic victory for the gallant Gurkha veterans of Nepal. This is a victory that restores honour and dignity to deserving soldiers who faithfully served in Her Majesty's armed forces. It is a victory for common sense; a victory for fairness; and a victory for the British sense of what is right."

All I can say to the judgement is GOOD, it's about bloody time. The people in the Home Office who originally made this decision are a bunch of spineless bastards who wouldn't know what a debt of honour was if it smacked them in the face with a Kukri. To deny these men and their families the right to stay in this country, to work and claim medical and financial benefits that they have more than earned was a disgusting display of hypocrisy, only equalled by the maltreatment of injured service men and women after the closing of military hospitals and treatment centres. There has been a complete breakdown of the Military Covenant by Labour, and they don't care.

We (the Police) deal with more people with 'insufficient ties' to this country every day and yet many are still here, begging, stealing, robbing, committing burglary and generally taking the complete piss with council housing and benefit claims and yet the Home Office will do nothing about it above paying lip service for fear of being branded as racists by people with more than a couple of axes to grind. Immigration won't even try and remand people when we nick them on suspicion of illegal entry any more; they just get released and asked to attend the immigration centre in Croydon in a couple of days time.

Funnily enough not many turn up.

Heaven forbid you're an easy target like a working teacher from Canada (for example) who is known to the immigration system after doing everything right and is easily traceable through tax payments, but was still threatened with removal a couple of weeks before their temporary leave to remain visa expired.

There are people in this country who should not be here in the first place let alone after committing crime. We know that. Everyone else knows that. Yet the Government refuse to deal with it and would rather turn their backs on the problem and disrespect an honourable group of soldiers who have only ever asked to live in the country that they have sworn to defend with their lives. Fifty thousand of whom have done so since their inclusion into the British Army.

Not that it means much, but I take my hat off to Mr Justice Blake for seeing sense, now lets see if the Home Office will do the honourable thing?

Metcountymounty.

The original post can be found http://sheepdogsandwolves.blogspot.com/2008/09/about-bloody-time.html

That Wenus Voman

Published on September 30, 2008 in Doric and diversity. Closed

written by Noddy from Welcome to Toy Town™

Fit am I tae dae?

She fit haes tae be obeyed has bin spikkin in tongues recently fit I dinna unnerstan.

Noo, usually it's affa difficult to mak oot fit she's bleetering aboot, partly due tae the fact she's a quine onywiy, bit add on her Invernesian twang and I'm dumfoonert maist o' the time.

Aye, I ken a sair fecht, bit listen up it gets wirser.

She's takken to spikkin in Dyslexic.

I caim hame the ither day an' she tells me 'at there's a domestic crisis seein' as a, "splug wis parkin". I'm nae quite sure far hid the wirse loose connection.

Then the ither nicht I asks her fit she wanted fae the chippie an' she answers, "een o' they Humbo Jaddocks." Eftir 'at I wis affa worried I'd repeat said phrase fan I wis doon at the shoppie.

But, she left the best far fan she wis keekin at the telly at sum cookery programme. Add the teuchter accent and say after me, "I've nivver had lack of ram."

Noo, surely yiv hae a pucklie o' examples yersel tae tell us a' aboot.

n.b. Diversity rating : 0/10

© McNoddy
Published by Toy Town™ Times

The original post can be found http://uisgebeathaagusleann.blogspot.com/2008/09/that-wenus-voman.html

Taking The Strain

Published on September 30, 2008 in Uncategorized. Closed

written by Stressed Out Cop from Stressed Out Cop

My daughter was coming home the other week on a train. There were a group of rowdy youths, under 16's, drinking and generally being arses. One of them started to pick on a passenger and this quickly escalated into a "situation". The yobbo takes his belt off and threatens the passenger with death by shanking. He didn't have a knife, or at least didn't produce one. Unfortunately for him, he bit off more than he could chew and the passenger ended up chasing him down the train.

At this point my daughter gets up and tries to split them up. She's not stupid and stands back as the passenger smacks the yobbo a few times before getting between them, telling him it's not worth it. Fortunately they were all off at the next stop and she could return to her seat. She recited this, slightly pissed off that everybody else was sat in their seats hardly daring to look up from their papers.

I was slightly surprised myself. Was this the same shy girl, who would have cried her eyes out in the same situation a year ago? It's down to military training and discipline. She's just back from 3 weeks of field exercises with the US Rangers and they've sent back a self assertive monster.

I can't really blame anybody else for not getting involved, it's a personal choice, but letting a girl sort out a fracas by herself, come on !!

Yet again there's been another example of a good Samaritan getting involved, and paying with his life. We should all salute people like Frank McGarahan . The best our elected leaders can manage is to advise us to jump up and down.

I'm glad my daughter didn't listen to Tony McNulty the police minister. She's been brought up to recognise right and wrong and acted correctly. She's an occasional reader having "busted" me months ago, and I'm proud of her.

The family of Mr McGarahan should grieve and then be proud too.

The original post can be found http://stressedoutcop.blogspot.com/2008/09/taking-strain.html

501

Published on September 29, 2008 in Uncategorized. Closed

written by Noddy from Welcome to Toy Town™

Since 9th February 2006, the selected residents of Toy Town™ have kept you up to date with the happenings hereabouts.

This is post 501. Ripple of virtual applause please.

Regular readers now have the option of becoming "Followers" (all very cult like I know) and can show their allegiance/addiction/adulation for this s(h)ite by adding themselves to our followers on the links bar. Go on, it's painless.

© Noddy
Published by Toy Town™ Times

The original post can be found http://uisgebeathaagusleann.blogspot.com/2008/09/501.html

That’s settled then.

Published on September 29, 2008 in Police, autism and kids. Closed

written by Noddy from Welcome to Toy Town™

Heard the one about the children's home not accepting their runaways back at 2am because the other cherubs were 'settled' and the influx of the returnees would disturb the others?

Laugh, I nearly choked.

Sticking on topic for a change, on two occasions recently, when asking parents for a photo of their missing weans, I was amazed (well not really) to be advised they didn't have such a thing. That speaks volumes to me.

Mind you there's no test before you have kids, but sometimes I wish there was.

Meanwhile below there's a few snippets I read which might help understanding some kids.

Autism in girls may be missed.

Let's not turn our back on troubled children.

Parents need lessons in ADHD.

It also seems we are persecuting our future generation according to Barnardos.

Kids, who'd have 'em.

© Mr Plod
Published by Toy Town™ Times

The original post can be found http://uisgebeathaagusleann.blogspot.com/2008/09/thats-settled-then.html

Not My Best Friend

Published on September 28, 2008 in Uncategorized. Closed

written by Stressed Out Cop from Stressed Out Cop

I don’t know why it is, but I’ve never liked dogs. There’s something about them and I think the feelings mutual. It might stem from when I played football on Sunday’s and slid into their mess on a regular basis on the park pitch. They are of course clever creatures, detecting my dislike and expressing theirs in return.

One of my first encounters with dogs was as a keen probationer. I’d found a couple of untaxed cars and having completed a check knocked on a front door to speak to the owner. This duly opened and I saw two dogs bound down the hallway towards me, a Collie and an Alsatian. What do you do? I think just stay still you’ll be all right. Wrong decision, the Collie sinks it’s teeth into my thigh.

The owner is very apologetic and promises to get her cars taxed. I return limping to the station to examine the damage. I’ve got a couple of puncture wounds and have to get a tetanus injection in my backside. Amuses the team no end, still the nurse was nice.

I started to get a complex a couple of years later, when policing a big event. We were chasing skinheads around who were having a thing with the Anti Nazi League. Police dogs were deployed as we put a cordon in. They were snarling and the police line began to move forwards, except me. A police dog had hold of my trouser leg and then shakes his head ripping the bottom so a large lump of cloth is flapping around. By way of explanation the handler says that they train the dog to grip using old police uniform, so it probably took a liking to the serge.

It didn’t get any better when the same day chasing after the BNP, a vagrants dog came chasing after me, perhaps they too are trained on the police serge, or was the flapping trouser leg that tempted him.

Of course things appear to have worsened over the years. I bumped into an old colleague at another station. He was good old bill and I asked what he was doing with himself. "Oh I’m the licensing officer". I raised an eyebrow, slightly confused. "You haven’t heard have you?", he says and pulls up his sleeve to reveal a disfigured and scarred forearm. He tells the story of how a Pit Bull locked onto his arm and had to be prised off a couple of years previously.

So that’s how it is nowadays. Dogs are used as weapons or at the very least a deterrent by youths and drug dealers. If it’s vicious you will not find me anywhere near a dog. Only last year I tried to seize a dog from a known drug dealer. I kept my distance but he still let it off the collar and it came towards me. I had to take evasive action leaping over a 4 foot high wall. I just had the picture of my mate’s forearm in my head.

We eventually got that one seized and it sat on “doggy death row” all year, pending a court case. We executed a warrant at the same dealers address a few months later and seized a pure bred American Pit Bull. It was massive but nobody claimed ownership so it too met a suitable end. Now there are suspect dogs everywhere. You don’t see the pure bred ones like above. They tend to be mixed Pit Bull and mastiff types. When seized they go off to secret kennels and the cost is about £10 - £15 a day in storage, whilst the matter is investigated. I believe we have almost reached capacity in my force area.

You can't get the dog destroyed unless the court orders it or the owner signs a disclaimer. So we are now in the position where we will seize a dog and return it, on condition that it's chipped, muzzled and kept on a lead at all times. Is Joe Slag really going to comply? I think not. It's time for some common sense - sign the disclaimer or we prosecute and Joe Slag has to pay all storage fees on conclusion. In any event the process needs to be simplified.

The original post can be found http://stressedoutcop.blogspot.com/2008/09/not-my-best-friend.html

More of a grind than a crunch

Published on September 28, 2008 in Uncategorized. Closed

written by Busy from Panda tales

My grand plan to extend the zeros on my wage slip by "Doing a bit of overtime" has floundered. Drowned by my own reluctance to actually do any more shifts and the fact that everyone else had the same idea the same week.

Mind you. It still seems that the same faces can be found bagging time and a half week in week out. The e-mails from the planners must be on a different server to mine. I often wonder what the nature of such a malady is which won't let someone work 24-7 shifts but still leaves the poor sufferer fit enough to work every rest day football match?

Yet still, of course, a silver lining is gleaming on the horizon. As commentators talk of an end to Capitalism I wonder if this will also herald an end to our cradle to grave handout system. How long will the electorate stand for subsidising the feckless and workshy when even decent hard working people are struggling to heat their homes?

I'm not railing against the welfare system as a whole here. I enjoy being able to see a Doctor for free as much as anyone (even if I do resent that I may have to wait a couple of days while a smack head in the cells will see the FME on demand) I'm glad for the help of the health visitor after mini Busy arrived but I'll stand a pint to the first politician of note who stands up and says enough! We will not pay for you to stay at home firing out babies by the score and inventing colourful new ways to spell Chardonnnaey and Bradliey. We will not entertain your various schemes to stay out of prison while you fail to attend drug treatment programmes by day and thieve by night. We will not pay for you to spend your days watching Jeremy Kyle and drinking Skol because you suffer "Wiv me nerves".

We're all being encouraged to tighten our belts a bit. Isn't this the time for the government to plug the biggest drain on our economy, the hand to mouth runts that infest our estates?

The original post can be found http://pandatales.blogspot.com/2008/09/more-of-grind-than-crunch.html