breezeboylan

I must admit I have been known to speed from time to time. In fact I failed my second driving test for speeding but is the woman in question on drugs?!!!! seriously does she think the police have nothing better to do! She was speeding, talking on a phone and no rego, she should have thanked them for not jailing her!!
Tracie

jon and alex

Well, as a copper it'll probably surprise you to hear that I would probably have given her a lift (within reason). At the end of the day it is nothing personal when we do our jobs and if people are reasonable with me I'll be reasonable with them.
Obviously, if people get all uppety and shouty screamy then they get the reaction they deserve!

thebears

Pregancy does not mean you are sick. It also depends on stage in Pregancy - 7 months compared to 7 weeks. Then again what is she doing going to work if she is heavily pregant?

phoenixinoz

M8.....if I knew my taxes were paying for the police to give someone a lift after speeding, no rego and talking on a mobile, then I'd report this for wasting public money. You're there to uphold the law, not be a taxi driver. The woman wasn't desperate, she was in a public area...and no prob making sure she was safe. She could have called a taxi from her mobile....

Nice copper that you are, you should be out there looking for villains and scoundrels, not giving members of the public a lift due to their car being impounded cos they've broken the law Wonder how many pregnant women who have not broken the law get a lift to wherever they're going by a copper

And ....just so you know, I've been done for speeding twice and lost 6 points. Instead of asking the copper for a favour I admitted my stupidity, hung my head in shame and embarrassment and paid the fines

You're a copper. You can be a nice one without endorsing stupid behaviour

Wendy

I've NEVER driven over the speed limit....






cos I don't drive

Wol

Yes, let her get a taxi or walk.

That's not the Aussie answer, though!

sj oldfield

..............Bit of a stickler for sticking to the speed limit............even more after the devastation on Burns Beach Road last week (not that I am staying this particular driver was speeding...........) but if you keep control of the speed you are more likely to keep control of the vehicle should you have to apply the emergancy breaks!!

jon and alex

Thanks for pointing out how to best do my job - much appreciated.
Most coppers would use what used to be termed the "attitude test" to decide whether to give her a lift.
As I said, I would give her a lift within reason - ie if it wasn't too far and wasn't going to take me away from my patch or occupy me too long.
We often give people a lift home when we have finished dealing with them in custody dependant on what they have done and how they have been with us.
It is always important to remember that today I may be issuing a ticket to someone or dealing with them in some other negative way but tomorrow I may need their help.
Also, if everyone we deal with walks away from us hating us we are not going to have much of a standing in society.
We police by consent, not by force.
If she was a decent person who had made a stupid mistake then why treat her in the same way as I would treat a hardened criminal?
I try not to alienate decent people even if they have committed a crime or traffic misdemeanour.

phoenixinoz

Actually I was giving an opinion. Something you're obviousoly not used to

Fair enough. Do you do the same for a drunk [but innocent] young female in a city at midnight, where the chances of anything terrible happening are multiplied? Afterall, she hasn't broken the law. Or do you only play Taxi driver to those that have? What's wrong with suggesting to either party they get a Taxi?

Great, so you reward bad behaviour by deciding who's been nice to you and take them home? I deduct from this that you have time which means there are enough police on the ground to manage real crimes out there then....

In that case manage them today in the manner that's warrented given they have done wrong, and tomorrow manage them in the way that warrents given they have done right. That's called managing people and situations according to circumstance and rewarding good behaviour, not bad

Agree. So work on respect and dignity, not the soft touch. Too often we send out a message that if you do wrong it is OK or societies fault or upbringing or whatever and these people get the kid glove treatment while the decent man/woman on the street are overlooked. If people see Police rewarding *bad* behaviour it sends out the wrong signals. Whatever happened here is not deemed a major crime in the eyes of the law but none the less it was a crime. Surely this should not be rewarded?.....

That's psychobabble. Strange that it's called the Police force then or has this terminology now been conveniently changed? Do you seriously beleive someone would consent to being aprehended? The Police seek the support of society to uphold the law however there are always those who don't conform hence societies rules being enforced where needs be by the Police. Hence Police force [as in forcing those who don't conform]. But thanks for the lesson anyway

Who mentioned treating this person as a hardened criminal? I think this is your emotional side surfacing again. Treat the person concerned with respect and dignity but don't promote bad behaviour by confiscating her car then offering a lift home in a Police vehicle. BTW...hypothetical question;what would happen if you had an accident on the way? [I'm thinking the ambulance/solicitor chasing society we live in today ] Would the Police be jeopordised in terms of liability in the event of an accident occuring and the passenger being seriously harmed if it was deemed Police liability? I can just see it now, pasenger claiming massive liability compensation due to police officer offering lift. Yep, small possibility but never the less a possibility and how much could that potentially cost the Tax payer

And you can do this by being respectful towards the general public whilst at the same time not condoning stupid behavior. Oh yes, that's right, you do that by personally deciding who's face fits...err....I mean by who behaves best.And I suppose that depends on whether the person has the nerve to ask for a lift.

Policeman or taxi driver?...from what you say it depends whether they have been naughty or really, really naughty?

I remember the Police force saying they didn't have enough constables on the street and they were stressed, under resourced and unable to cope with current workloads. Funny that they find the time to ferry people around who break the law then. I suppose even coppers want to be liked, rather than respected

artep

YAY!!! Go Phoenix! Brilliantly put m8

phoenixinoz

Thank you my love

I've no doubt "Jon and alex" is a great copper, as are the majority of coppers, but it's about time *the establishment* i.e Police, law courts, solicitors etc, etc, treated people with respect and dignity, not kid gloves

BadgeIsBack

I agree with you both on various points,but I think our copper friend can call the shots and is already treating people with dignity. The police
are not all demons(!) and I like that they apply an attitude test in their dealing with the public. I know from experience that good attitude with cops can actually get you out of several traffic offences. It's important(!)

Wol

It is often said that criminals and antisocial yobs don't seem to learn anything from the legal system and the way they are treated.

I disagree.

I think they learn very early on that they can get away with blue murder with very little comeback, and I also think that this learning experience reinforces their antisocial behaviour.

phoenixinoz

And your point is?

I realise cops can [and do] call the shots.

The point I make is that the Police don't have to provide people with lifts in police cars for them to gain public respect. Indeed by wasting public money this way, might have the opposite efect.

BadgeIsBack

When determining all this stuff,I think you have to look at the crime first, and each offender on merit. Some crimes on statute are just crimes of strict liability, you stuff up, you get sweaty (or get a dent in your bank account) eg: Not renewing your rego is criminal but I don't see it as anti-social. I think I might have done it myself 10 years ago.