Two Female Police Officers Shot Dead.

[Kerosene]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-19635239

I'm re-posting this because I am truly ashamed of how I posted my initial thread.

I was highly emotional - perhaps no excuse? and I wish to retract my hasty and ill founded comments about fellow ABers.

I am only human and sometimes fall short of my own standards.

[Zeuhl]

Apology accepted

I think that for many of us, knowing what a dangerous and difficult job the police do makes us more intolerant when some officers 'let the side down'.

As I have posted before, I have known a coule of officers over the years and my daughter is acquainted with some through her work, and in many ways I find their attitude to the law and truth rather troubling.

However, I wouldn't want their jobs, most of them do a good job most of the time and we would be in a right mess without them.

Condolences to the families.

[Gromit]

This story has been escalating for weeks.

It relates to this incident...

http://www.bbc.co.uk/...d-manchester-19609597

And finishes with todays shocking murders.

[Kerosene]

Zeuhl,

Thank you for your comments. I know for sure that there are indeed some rotten apples in the Police barrel, and maybe meeting a cop with a bad attitude can colour someone's judgement and assume that every other one in the force is just as bad? Not so from personal experience.

Yes, I admit how some on here may believe I can see no wrong in the Police - untrue. Just like any other section of society, there's good - and bad.

[Kerosene]

Gromit,

Yes, it seems like the suspect for today is one and the same from your link? Time will tell. Horrific for all concerned, both in those other incidents as well as today's.

Although today's was as a result of a 999 call, it was nevertheless treated as a 'routine call' which, tragically, turned out to be not the case.

There but for the grace of God go some of us.

[Zeuhl]

It's odd isn't it?

Recently, an acquaintance of ours, a young woman with a small child, found armed police in her front and rear gardens effectively surrounding her house.

Reason; someone she hardly knows, 'might' have been involved in an armed robbery and 'might' have been in her house. In fact he's never been there.

Fair enough - got to be careful. so why are unarmed female officers caught up in the arrest of someone suspected of murderous gun and grenade attacks?

[jno]

the original thread seems to have wandered off, anyway, so no harm done.

[sp1814]

Gromit

Ahhh...this all makes sense now.

I remember a story from a few weeks ago, where someone had been arrested in Manchester, and I recall he only had one eye. Now I get the link.

[Kerosene]

jno,

I only wish I could have had the earth open etc etc? What a p!llock I am?

Zeuhl,

Re 999 calls, the biggest problem is that not every one is an emergency, the system is grossly abused, i.e. I personally know of a 999 call where someone simply expected the Police to come and give him a lift home. Another where someone considered it appropriate to do the same because a couple of kids were playing football outside his front door.

Each call is graded and assessed before deployment, and my heart goes out to whoever in the control centre decided - no doubt in good faith - that it should be treated as a 'routine call'. That'll be on their conscience for the rest of his/her days.

[VHG]

>>so why are unarmed female officers caught up in the arrest...

They were on routine patrol.

I gather they went to explore a house that was supposed to be empty and came across the person who shot them by chance.

So they were not actually involved in the arrest of the wanted killer, they just stumbled across him. Maybe he had been sleeping in the empty house.

You cant arm every police officer in Manchesrter on the off chance they "may" come across this killer while on their rounds.

[Kerosene]

It has been reported that the suspect wasn't arrested at the scene but instead gave himself up at a local Police Station?

[Gromit]

Another one for your list 10ClarionSt.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/4341711.stm

We do have Ricky Hatton though.

[Zeuhl]

kero/vhg- thanks for that

gottit now - routine call out meets up with desperate fugitive

that is bad luck - and very sad

i'm not sure that this is much comfort, but even where officers are routinely armed they would be likely to approach such a situation with sidearms holstered and could meet the same fate

[emmie]

what a truly horrible situation, two unarmed officers dead, i wonder why we don't arm them all, it may not have saved them, who knows, but it could have given them a fighting chance.

[pugthedog]

thought's go out to the families

[albaqwerty]

Condolences to their families and friends.
I don't want to see an armed police force but I just wish that the perpetrators of murder get locked up for life and the key thrown away.

[emmie]

As i do, shame this lowlife didn't suffer the same fate.

[Kerosene]

Zeuhl,

I know of another incident whereby a suspect had shot his mother and sister dead, dumped them in the bath at the family home, then went to a factory, shot one other person dead, drove off, still armed, and was stopped and arrested a short time later by two unarmed traffic officers - true story - and it happened in England about 20 years ago.

[Zeuhl]

em

Perhaps this is one reason.

I think this is the most recent poll of police officers by the police federation(2006)

Summary of key findings member survey



The response rate was high and the message emphatic. An overwhelming majority of 82 per cent stated that they do not want all officers to be routinely armed on duty. This is particularly significant given that there has been almost no change in police officers’ opinions since we conducted the previous surveys in 2003 and 1995, and this despite the massive rise in gun related crime.

[emmie]

at the Olympics, Paralympics, you didn't see any unarmed police officers, at least as far as i could tell. Is it the threat of terrorism at such events that has them armed, and those who guard the Royals, Government ministers, they are also armed. If they don't wish it then alright.