Police Sharing Images of 3 Murder Victims

[Lighteningstrikes]

This country is going to the dogs and words fail me.

The depraved sickos in the police-force that shared horrific graphic WhatsApp images of the 3 knifed murder victims in Nottingham - one only gets a talking to and one only gets a final warning!!

YANBU - they should be sacked and charged.

YABU - they should remain in the police-force on full pay/pension

This thread should be 100% YANBU
If anyone thinks you are then shame on them.
Another sickening police scandal.

Agreed, it takes some sort of sick minded bastard to do what they did.

I’ve lost all respect for the police, they seem to be getting worse and worse, and the hierarchy are a weak spineless joke.

What is wrong with these people

To the 17% who have said the OP is being unreasonable then you are as sickening as the police officers guilty of this vile behaviour.
You click YABU but you haven't got the guts, decency or the brain power to come on here and tell the OP why.
You lot are part of the problem.

Can anyone explain why they believe YABU?

It's being discussed on ITV now.

The mother of Barnaby has written to the police with regard to the vile comments the police officers said.

Does anyone have access to her letter published in The Times, behind its paywall?

Dehumanising the victims by police and chi chatting on a WhatsApp. Where's the humanity? Where's the decency? As Emma, Barnaby's mother asks.

I can't vote as it is closed but you, of course, ANBU.

I do wonder if the people you voted YABU did so because of the order in which you listed the options in your OP. If I was reading when tired or not paying much attention, I may have clicked the top option due to not paying enough attention.

This has made me feel quite sick. That they are still in the force disgusts me.

Some of the people who were told graphic information about the murders were not police officers but relatives. Just voyeurism.

"She raised concerns after it emerged the son of the force’s boss, Kate Meynell, was among members of the police WhatsApp group in which graphic details were posted about the killings."

I mean seriously lacking compassion and thinking skills sharing this with people not involved in the investigation.

It sadly doesn't shock me but it is absolutely disgusting. I would put money on this a) not being the first time they have done this and b) that they will do it again.

Police officers have to witness every kind of depravity without so much as a counselling session. And you expect them to behave with humanity? You have no idea. Thank god for them.

I’ve just read the news story this morning about the awful wording used to describe the deaths, in a WhatsApp message. Haven’t read anything about sharing images on WhatsApp. Where has this been reported?

According to Barnaby’s mum it was messages with graphic language not images. She said she doesn’t want them to be vilified or shamed. There is clearly an issue around professionalism and compassion generally in the police and something needs to be addressed on a wide scale. It’s a fundamental cultural change which is needed and starts with leadership. Easier said than done when they are under pressure so I can’t see it changing any time soon.

I don't expect them to talk about victims in the way they did, "proper butchered" and they had their "innards out and everything " and share with people who are not in the police, family members of senior police officers, etc.

Apparently they broke their work phone policy too.

Yes they have a difficult job but sharing things as they did is wrong and distasteful for the families to read.

Professional conduct is vital in thr police force.

Sharing graphic images of victims should be a sacking offence or at least a final warning. Random family members of officers should not have access to this.

This.

It's a crime scene, not a free for all.

They are able to access counseling support. Stop lying. There is no excuse for a lot of the actions coming from a sizable number of Police. The only difference is that now it is coming to the attention of the mainstream, and affecting them, in ways that it did not before.

All the news reports are saying there were no images shared, just graphic descriptions. Doesn't make it any better tho.

Agree the wording used in those messages was terrible and inexcusable, but I do think op should get this thread amended, especially the title as I don’t think it’s accurate at all

It really does beggar belief.

WhatsApp groups have been an issue for some time. In my old force it has been absolutely explicitly stated that they must not be used for official police information and that social use can also lead to dismissal if behaviour on the group falls below the standards of professional behaviour and could bring the force into disrepute. As a result, what was commonplace has now largely died out. Most officers still have a group chat for their team but it tends to be limited to perfunctory arrangements.

I'd be surprised if it was much different on other forces. Anyone who posts stuff like this is therefore stupid as well as careless and unthinkingly callous, which calls into question their suitability for the role in itself.

I'm so sorry for the families.

There is a question to be answered about how police and civilian staff (who are subject to different regulations) decompress after dealing with compounded trauma. The removal of police canteens from most premises, the culture of 90% single crewing and being out of the station al the time have all removed many of the opportunities for cops to talk to each other. Social media has filled that gap just as it has in other areas of society. We need to think about how we provide them with the ability to offload in healthy ways instead of these deeply damaging ways. However, that's not an excuse - this still shouldn't have happened. I've seen some horrendous things in my time and never done similar.

The police who shared images of the two sisters in London went to prison, so that is more than just a sacking offence.

Policing,and any emergency service, puts the person in a situation that the average person could not cope with.

There is truth that there is compartmentalisation and a certain black humour to enable coping.

However, the bar should be higher for conduct in the emergency services.
I have never known counselling and support not to be offered.

There is no doubt the traumas witnessed can cause lifelong issues.

However basic compassion and dignity for victims is the backbone of all of the emergency services.

Feel very deeply for the victims and their families.

The devastation of losing your loved one, followed by the shock that your tragedy has been used as entertainment, must be beyond endurance.

The language used makes me wonder if the officers are in their 20s. Sadly I think that the younger generation when still at school have access to so many vile images on line that they become desensitized to stuff over time. I was shocked at some of the things doing the rounds when my daughter was at school, and this was over 10 years ago, so I dread to think what it's like now.

These teenagers then go on to be part of the workforce so I'm not surprised that some of them lack compassion.

However, I do think it should be made clear to new recruits in the police force that any sharing of sensitive information with family etc is a sackable offence. They need the public's trust.