To be losing all respect for the police?

[GroundHogDay01]

Earlier this week a man was being told he cannot sit in his front garden. Now we have a man being threatened to be pepper sprayed for absolutely no reason.

The public are going to lose faith in the police. My DH was being racially abused once and a couple of officers just walked on by.

I think the police need a huge shake after this. It’s not good enough to be issuing apologies after they’ve been caught bang to rights doing something wrong

Thoughts?

I saw th front garden one and was quite shocked. The officer said “the virus doesn’t stop at your garden” which means she thinks it’s like smog and simply doesn’t understand how it is transmitted, she was also on someone’s private property, trying to enforce a law she’d made up in her own head, so also didn’t understand the job she was supposed to be doing.

It’s bewildering how anyone could be so ill informed. On something that’s been on the news for weeks, constant media attention. But there she was in that families garden, making it clear she was very confused and ill informed.

Then you have the opposite side. Those patrolling the non essential aisles in the supermarkets, or checking people’s trolleys.

I have close family who are police, I’m hugely supportive for what is a tough jobs but this has shown a side that is nothing short of disturbing.

What happened to your husband is appalling

The front garden incident did appear police were being too heavy handed

I do not know of the pepper spray incident

We are going to get reports of police being heavy handed and at times I am sure this is what happened there are some that want to exert their authority

But I think the police have got a difficult situation to handle as we can see from here who many people think the guidelines don’t apply to them or try to bend them to suit themselves

As long as the police that are being unprofessional are dealt with quickly then I can’t see there being a problem - some people just don’t or respect authority

I have never seen so many police about as I have these last two weeks

Totally agree. What’s concerning also is that they don’t seem to be changing their approach in response to the very public outcry that we see on the internet every time they pull something like the above. Demonstrates a worrying absence of accountability. Was very uncomfortable to watch the poor man being treated with such disrespect - no excuse for any of it, especially heartlessly ignoring his plea to just loosen the handcuffs.

For gods sake it’s a few isolated incidents which of course are going to get reported because it’s a great news story for the newspapers.

I agree. It seems as though some are thoroughly enjoying having all these extra powers and are lauding it over whoever they can. The police in general seem to have forgotten that part of their job is to maintain community cohesion and try to prevent social unrest. This is going to become more and more important as people start to lose patience with lockdown restrictions.

I actually don’t think it’s all areas, where we live now, police are generally very supportive. It doesn’t seem to be very structured. They handcuff and threaten an innocent man for doing a good deed yet break up house parties with barely a slap on the wrist. There’s no middle ground. Speaking for myself though in my area they are very supportive

The next thread will be about how the police are not using their new powers enough. They can’t win. For what it’s worth - they have my full support when you see some of the morons they have to deal with.

But there she was in that families garden, making it clear she was very confused and ill informed.

You mean thick. You’re being very kind, but I think the word you’re looking for is thick - not a word I would throw around often but it certainly applies here. Still, I don’t think it’s not a reflection on police in general, I think that’s unfair. It’s newsworthy because of how unbelievable it is.

No I've not lost respect for the police.

I hope your never in the position when a member of your family is murdered and the police work tirelessly to catch the evil bastard and bring him to court.
Also the family liaison officer who is available 24/7 to get you through the worst experience of your life.

It is very concerning, the police are quite often reliant on public goodwill and support. It's a relationship which needs to be maintained.
The speed at which officers both senior and otherwise have decided to make up the law as they go along is frightening.
Power crazed in a matter of weeks, it's all a bit Stanford prison experiment.
Lancashire police however have been all over Facebook delivering food parcels, I'd really like it if one or two of them would keep the sunbathers and picnicking folk off the parks and stop the motorists driving like maniacs because they know nobody is around.

A few police officers fucked up and I do think that some people choose the job just for the power element.

I like to think that the vast majority though are doing their best trying to adjust to their new normal, as we all are.

What happened to your husband is awful though.

@parkheadparadise I actually am, I was sexually assaulted years ago & the police and CPS are dealing with my case. They couldn’t have been more supportive hence why I said, in my area they are supportive

Yes they are a few isolated incidents but the police force should be pulled up on these. I am from an era when the police were known for framing anyone they fancied, harassing people from ethnic minorities, ignoring domestic abuse etc. There are probably still a few (hundred) bad apples.

The tiny handful of cases you see widely publicised atm are not at all representative of how hard the vast majority of police officers work. Especially right now. You have no idea, believe me.

Mistakes are made and individuals might be rude, wrong, unfair or cruel even but this is human nature. I met a total twit of a bin man recently. He was not representative of his profession.

We’re they actually officers that have done this or the adult Boy Scouts dressed in Black that even the police roll their eyes at ?

Oh ffs, just a handful of overzealousness and you've "lost all respect for the police"?

I agree it’s a few officers getting it wrong, but the tweet from one of the Scottish forces saying they had patrolled the supermarket and were pleased to see no one in the non essential aisles is just daft.

The female officer who told the people they could not use their front garden wasn’t on a power trip, she was simply clue less and should not have been allowed out in her own.

As said I’m hugely supportive of the police, but these people, the over zealous and the clue less will damage their reputation

Nice drip feed by the way.

Demonstrates a worrying absence of accountability.

Nothing new. They always close ranks.

The police were a fucking abomination when I reported serious sexual assaults and needed their help, so if we're casting wide judgements on this situation based on different past experiences then I can say that nothing about what we're now seeing surprises me in the slightest.

I have lost the tiny fragments of respect I had left. If the few decent police officers want respect them they need to stop making excuses for their incompetent/abusive colleagues. Until that changes they are just as culpable for the toxic culture in policing.

People are right to point out that the bad examples of individual police officers abusing their power (or rather simply misunderstanding what their power actually is) should not be used as a sweeping brush that taints the entire police force of this country.

But equally these examples should not be ignored. We should draw attention to them and the police themselves should be made answerable to them.

For those bad apples (or simply misguided apples) are representing the police. They have to be held accountable.

To dismiss (or play down) the actions of a minority of incidents by stating that overall the police are doing a very good job in a very difficult time runs the risk of letting the police off the hook for those bad actions that do happen.

And they absolutely should not be let off the hook for these kind of incidents that are happening. They should be held accountable. They should be apologetic. And they (not us) should be ensuring that incidents such as these do not continue.

They're not isolated incidents.

And they absolutely should not be let off the hook for these kind of incidents that are happening. They should be held accountable. They should be apologetic. And they (not us) should be ensuring that incidents such as these do not continue.

Exactly. Anything less creates an environment where abuse and corruption flourish.

Of course they should be held accountable. Nobody is suggesting they're let off the hook.

But they don't represent an entire profession to the point people should lose all respect for the service.

There have undoubtedly been incidents where some coppers have allowed a bit more power to go to their officious little heads, and others where they are obviously not bright enough to understand the new laws which they are supposed to be enforcing.

Our civil liberties are precious, and should not be surrendered lightly, even in a pandemic.

It’s nice to see a mixture of opinions here. I think the issue is the police were told not to be too forceful & what % of police are still ignoring this we don’t know. But to threaten to pepper spray someone is completely out of order & the office should have consequences alongside issuing an apology