I am wonderfully middle class, and should be thoroughly supportive of the police. However, every interaction with them that I have had has left me feeling slightly jaded.
I have three points on my licence for using a mobile phone while driving. Apparently the officer saw a light shining against my face, and this was incontrovertible proof I was guilty. The fact that I don't own a mobile phone - or have one in my possession - wasn't seen as a defence to this. Given a choice between believing a 'mop' or a police officer, a magistrate is likely to favour the police, so it didn't seem worth taking it to court. I'm still fucked off about it.
The other incident was when I woke up at about 3am to find my front garden full of police officers. I opened the window and asked what the hell they were doing standing amongst my roses, and they told me that I'd phoned the police. I told them I hadn't, and asked them to leave. The front door was kicked in, and six or so coppers let themselves in. I'm still not quite sure what happened after that, but there were a number of words exchanged between me and a police officer holding a torch in my face. Eventually they left, leaving me with a broken door. I was told to raise it with their inspector the following morning. On ringing, they denied having any police officers anywhere near my house, making any sort of entry, or of breaking the door. Neither was my solicitor capable of making any headway, and I ended up shelling out £300 for a replacement door.
For the avoidance of doubt, I'm not a criminal, and have no record beyond the 3 points detailed above. I have no idea what the police stood to gain from either of the incidents above, but I know they happened.
There have been a number of people posting on the thread identifying themselves as police officers, and saying that the job is hard, and we should accept all of this. I'm sure the job is hard, but it's one that you're trained for, and that pays well. Police officers have a lot of powers, and I think the public are entitled to expect that that power is used wisely, and never abused.
The argument that the police are overstretched and busy would hold more weight if they didn't spend so much time pissing about with rude text messages between teenagers, and attending diversity courses. Tell me - if so much crime happens on Fri/Sat nights, why is the car park of my local police station empty then? It looks like the majority of police officers keep office hours.
As for the comment that 'the public get the police they deserve', I'd refer you to Robert Peel's principles of modern policing. Remember that the police are the public, and the public are the police, with the police only being paid to carry out the responsibilities of all the public. In fact, read all of the principles, and then ask yourself whether your police force is acting in line with them. My suspicion is that it is not.
evilkitten.