Damo Posted December 28, 2003 Report Share Posted December 28, 2003 Yes I know it's an age old debate but given the recent incident in leeds isn't it about time our police FORCE were equipped with fire arms (whether it be lethal or non-lethal)?There are now more firearms in the hands of criminals than ever before and its rising by the day!How can the goverment expect the police to protect and serve the public when they are vastly overpowered?I'm not biased because I'm joining the police, I would take the same view regardless!Damo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
moon Posted December 28, 2003 Report Share Posted December 28, 2003 I respect the UK police because they are generally unarmed. I'd like to see a one year amnesty on unlicensed weapons followed by the introduction of a mandatory 25 years in a secure prison for possession, life for use, irrespective of subsequent injury. You Brits have got something special. Take a look at gun crime in countries where the police carry. Frightening. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Grim Reaper Posted December 28, 2003 Report Share Posted December 28, 2003 if our police are armed, will this make the criminals believe that they must be armed just to be on an equal footing?I am halfway convinced that our police should be armed but would it have saved the poor chaps life in leeds. I think not from the sounds of the reports. What is clear is that more needs to be done to prevent the guns from reaching the steets. If the guns didnt reach general circulation then there would be no need for the police to be armed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
doug Posted December 28, 2003 Report Share Posted December 28, 2003 I seem to remember that when we had Capital punishment the police were treated with respect. They had the knowledge that if they suffered the ultimate while performing their duties they knew that the offender's would be hunted down and suffer the ultimate penalty. Also people, in general, felt safer then. I know there have been some miscarriages of justice, but surely in any society there is a need for the greater need of the populace.Don't wish to upset anybody but that is my opinion and I will respect all contrary views. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Grim Reaper Posted December 28, 2003 Report Share Posted December 28, 2003 i totally agree about the lack of respect for the police. The problem now is children that know they cant be touched by the criminal justice system and the police are powerless to do anything. (not that all crime stems from children)Parents are reluctant to do anything or are just to damn ignorant to care.Bring back the 50's ( and i wasnt even born!) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Damo Posted December 28, 2003 Author Report Share Posted December 28, 2003 I am halfway convinced that our police should be armed but would it have saved the poor chaps life in leeds. I think not from the sounds of the reportsYour quite correct, the officers stopped a vehicle for whatever reason, then without searching or handcuffing the suspect they sat him in the back off their patrol car, this isn't police standards and they paid the ultimate price for their oversight.But even if it didn't go as far as fully arming the police with lethal firearms (Guns) then surely there is a need for baton guns, tazers etc, gone are the days when the police could do their job without fear of having a gun pulled on them, as criminal activities grow and more and more gangs fight amongst each other thus arming themselves for "protection" against other criminals do the police not have a right to be able to protect themselves and communities?Damo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Grim Reaper Posted December 28, 2003 Report Share Posted December 28, 2003 whilst seeing your point about extra protection, is giving our police more arms the way to go. Surely it is just a cycle that will only escalate by arming our forces. If the money was spent on more officers for the detection of the gun crimes in the first place then would there be a need for arming? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
moon Posted December 28, 2003 Report Share Posted December 28, 2003 If I really wanted to I could probably obtain an Uzi by tea time on Friday. That market will still be there, armed police or not. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest nellie2 Posted December 28, 2003 Report Share Posted December 28, 2003 My personal opinion doesn't really matter here (I hate guns!). I think the only people who should have a say on this one are the men and women who are out there doing the job. They know what the issues are better than any of us because they are living it every day.If they feel they should be armed then so be it.... but it is a sad reflection on todays society if that is what happens. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Shirley_Crabtree Posted December 29, 2003 Report Share Posted December 29, 2003 I doubt that arming all of the police with pistols and shotguns is really the answer...I'd rather give them non-lethal weapons such as cs-gas,tasers and pepper-spray.Quick response armed units already exist for extreme situations...Let's not get carried away by one-off situations!!Cheers.Shirl. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andsome Posted December 29, 2003 Report Share Posted December 29, 2003 I doubt that arming all of the police with pistols and shotguns is really the answer...I'd rather give them non-lethal weapons such as cs-gas,tasers and pepper-spray.Quick response armed units already exist for extreme situations...Let's not get carried away by one-off situations!!Cheers.Shirl.DITTO Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ranger Posted December 29, 2003 Report Share Posted December 29, 2003 A couple of guys I know are police officers and have been for about forty years between them now, even though they agree that there is less respect shown to the police and more guns around both are agreed that they wouldn't want to be armed as they feel it would only escalate the gun problem with more petty criminals carrying firearms. At the moment gun crime is still not widespread in the UK compared to most countries so unless this drastically changes, I also think our police are better of unarmed with armed rapid response units dealing with criminals carrying guns. I also believe that capital punishment should be used for, if not all murders, at least the murder of a policeman in the line of duty Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andsome Posted December 29, 2003 Report Share Posted December 29, 2003 A couple of guys I know are police officers and have been for about forty years between them now, even though they agree that there is less respect shown to the police and more guns around both are agreed that they wouldn't want to be armed as they feel it would only escalate the gun problem with more petty criminals carrying firearms. At the moment gun crime is still not widespread in the UK compared to most countries so unless this drastically changes, I also think our police are better of unarmed with armed rapid response units dealing with criminals carrying guns. I also believe that capital punishment should be used for, if not all murders, at least the murder of a policeman in the line of dutyCapital punishment is great if the person found guilty IS TRULY GUILTY. There have however been several guilty verdicts overturned in the light of new evidence. How would you feel if a close relative or friend of yours had been executed and several years later the verdict was overturned? A guilty verdict is supposed in law to be returned if there is no reasonable doubt, but on too many occasions this has been found not to be so reasonable. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ranger Posted December 29, 2003 Report Share Posted December 29, 2003 Andsome I know what you mean and it is only lately that I have come to this way of thinking (although I have to admit I still have some reservations) but modern technology regards DNA and othe forensic advances mean that it is now a lot more foolproof in proving someones guilt. I do know miscarriage of justice go on and in fact could have been the victim of one, if o prosecution witness hadn't told the truth while the police stood in the witness box and lied through their teeth. It was only a minor case, but it caused me a lot of time, travel and money (as well as a night in the cells) and a lack of trust for the police for a long time (hence some of the reservations I do have) but I think we are now at the stage where we really need to consider bringing back capital punishment for some crimes Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andsome Posted December 29, 2003 Report Share Posted December 29, 2003 As long as you admit that miscarriages of justice are possible, I don't see how you can justify the risk, as you say, it is NOT unknown for police to lie in order to get a conviction. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sir T Fireball Posted December 30, 2003 Report Share Posted December 30, 2003 i totally agree about the lack of respect for the police. The problem now is children that know they cant be touched by the criminal justice system and the police are powerless to do anything. (not that all crime stems from children)The rot set in so long ago that these respectless kids are now the policemen of today. The attitudes of all people, from all sections of our community have changed for the worse and there is no going back. All we will end up doing is upping our tolerance levels.As for the death penalty. It never worked. Hard labour would. Tougher sentences for 1st time offenders would. Punishment that fits in with the victims perception of how severe the crime was should be the norm. Do away with the term 'petty' crime. Get caught stealing, have the tendons in your arm severed for 'X' amount of time. They can be re-connected once the time is served. Rapists get the lot chopped off and surgically grafted to their foreheads along with some long hard labour.and so on........ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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