Should the police be armed and capital punishment re-introduced for certain crimes?

[anotheoldgit]

http://www.dailymail....d-officers-armed.html

In the wake of the recent shootings of the two policewomen is it now time that our police were armed?

And then why stop at that, should capital punishment also be re-introduced for the killing of police officers, children and terrorism?

[ummmm]

No and No.

[NOX]

No and no, and working on your theory it's worse to kill a policeman than anyone else. How is that?

[woofgang]

I agree no and no. And I understand that the police don't want to be armed either.

[Jeza]

No and a definite NO.

[Baldric]

NO & NO

[friedgreentomato]

No and No

[Zeuhl]

I think we've already dealt with these questions in earlier threads

The police, when polled by their federation in 2006 said NO to routine arming:

<<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. >>

I also recall that we recently established that police killings are currently at the same level as in the 1950's so the absence of capital punishment seems to make no difference.

Also, evidence from other countries where they have such things, is that neither capital punishment nor routine arming saves officers from being killed.

[dannyk13]

No and a definite yes.

[Bazile]

"We are passionate that the British style of policing is routinely unarmed policing. Sadly we know from the experience in America and other countries that having armed officers certainly does not mean, sadly, that police officers do not end up getting shot."

I agree with the foregoing from Greater Manchester Chief Constable Sir Peter Fahy

[missprim]

Some of our police are armed for certain situations but I don't think all our police officers should be armed.
Even if these two officers were armed it's unlikely they would have been able to protect themselves.
As for capital punishment, well I have always thought that this should return but only if it can be proved for sure that someone definitely committed the crime as I still feel that this would act as a deterrent to some people.
Things that really bother me about this case and I apologize if it's already been mentioned, but why was this man out on bail for murder and why didn't the people who knew he was there in Hattersley inform the police?

[MarkRae]

No and no.

IMO the dreadful problems we're currently facing with "serious" (for want of a better term) crimes will not be solved either by arming the police or by the reintroduction of capital punishment.

What is required is a TOTAL overhaul of the sentencing guidelines and a return to a system where punishment fits the crime. Life should mean precisely that - the convicted murderer will die in prison. Of course, sufficient flexibility should exist for things like new evidence and appeal but no more than that.

[FredPuli43]

According to a survey of policemen , cited on the Wright programme this morning, 56 per cent of officers would resign the force if ordered to carry a gun. If that is accurate, we'd have difficulty arming officers.

Capital punishment for murdering a policeman on duty or a prison officer by a serving prisoner, among a few murders, was the penalty once, to the exception of most murders. Does anybody think that a pscyhotic or hardened criminal really cares? Podolsa was hanged for shooting a policeman in cold blood. He wasn't deterred and nor were others. But it's impossible to answer the question; there may have been someone who thought that they wouldn't kill someone because they might hang for it but they would if kill them if they were sure to get life.

Trouble with the death penalty was that whether you hanged or not depended on the state of digestion, as it were, of the Home Secretary. If he thought the hanging would be popular, you hanged, if unpopular you wouldn't, and there were as many ways of thinking as there were Home Secretaries.

[Zeuhl]

<why was this man out on bail for murder and why didn't the people who knew he was there in Hattersley inform the police? >

Apparently there wasn't sufficient evidence to charge him so they had to let him go while enquiries continued

Allegedly, police were told he was in the area and it was 'common knowledge' - but who knows ...

[missprim]

I think that every case is different and we can't say that capital punishment is for everyone but there have been certain cases in the past where I do believe the guilty people should have been executed. The Moors Murderers and the West's are 2 such cases.

[FredPuli43]

^^ Typo: 'psychotic' and 'Podola' ^^

[jackthehat]

No.....and no.

[Zeuhl]

Why would we kill people like The Moors Murderers?

Is it because in our opinion they don't deserve to live and it suits us to get rid of them?

If so, that is probably very close to their reasoning for killing the children in the first place

We should not want to be that similar to the likes of them

[bentaxle]

Well I think its no-no but what is the country coming to '
Went to the hospital the other day and they have police there on duty and the library also have a security man because of the trouble 'its the last places you should expect trouble

[Ellipsis]

No and no.

However, if the convicted criminal wanted to euthanize themselves after a certain period in prison (e.g. five or ten years) then I might be in favour of that.