Real Policing

Johnno,

ACT ONE

A few months ago I attended a domestic incident where a father had assaulted his son and his wife.  He was still in the house when I arrived and I nicked him on suspicion of assault occasioning actual bodily harm x2.  A colleague stayed at the house and did the statement and photos and completed the domestic violence booklet.  It’s a pain in the backside to do this booklet but nonetheless it potentially has some use serving as a risk assessment.  As you will know domestic violence is rarely a one off incident.  So, although everyone hates to do them (another bloody form!) it is accepted that it can be a benefit to help manage the protection of the injured party.  The booklet is forwarded onto the domestic violence unit who follow up the incident and liaise with the victim.  From this info in the booklet and talking to the injured party, measures can be put in place where deemed necessary - like a panic alarm.  In my case the injured party was protected by bail conditions, a civil injunction and a police high response marker placed on the address. 

A couple of weeks back, the crime for this suddenly and without warning appeared back on my workload.  What’s this?  Someone has cocked this up, surely?  A call to the crime management unit to get this corrected left me dumbfounded.  I was told I had to phone the crime management unit back and update them with the answers to 40 questions for each crime.  There’s two crimes here so that’s 80 questions!  Firstly, WHY???  The guy has been CONVICTED.  It’s done and dusted.  Secondly, and far more importantly, the questions I need to update are the ones covered in the domestic violence booklet completed at the scene on the day by my colleague and sent to the domestic violence unit.  Why am I duplicating work here especially for a historic job that is finished with?  Stuff that.  I am not bothering.  I’m too busy dealing with today’s crimes. 

ACT TWO

I was left insulted, mystified and damn angry after having received an e-mail from human resources last week asking me to complete a survey.  Was this survey something of value?  Say, to do with improving officer safety?  No.  It was a pile of self evident political correctness gone bonkers asking me to state my sexual orientation!  What the hell has that to do with anyone else apart from me and my wife or, if I was a gay man, my partner?  How does your sexual orientation impact upon your ability to be a police officer anyway?  I don’t understand it.  The reason given was something to do with monitoring quotas, which were probably equality related.  It worries me that there is a consideration that the colour of your skin or your sexual preference should be a factor to be measured in your suitability to do the job.  I take everyone as they come and judge individuals on their own merit, both personally and professionally.  Surely that’s far more important than who they like to sleep with? 

Cheers.