Police question wisdom of arms in self-defence

Press, 19 April 1986, Page 8

Police question wisdom of arms in self-defence

PA Wellington Palmerston North’s police chief has questioned the comments Mr Trevor de Cleene made about keeping a shotgun for protection, in a debate in Parliament on Wednesday. Chief Superintendent Jim Wooders said that Mr de Cleene was an influential person and some people might think that if he considered it all right to arm himself they could do the same. “People in influential positions should be careful of what they say,” Mr Wooders said. “This could cause an escalation of the use of firearms.” Mr de Cleene, member

of Parliament for Palmerston North, said in the debate that he kept a pump-action shotgun and buckshot under his bed and knew many people in Palmerston North who were doing the same.

Mr Wooders said inquiries had since been made in Palmerston North which showed that so many air pistols had been bought that many retailers had none left.

"This tends to support Mr de Cleene’s statement that lots of elderly people in Palmerston North are in fact arming themselves through fear of intruders. “I must immediately say I am extremely disturbed at this trend.” Mr Wooders said he

believed it would not alleviate the problem of armed offences but would have the opposite effect. “If an elderly person armed himself with a firearm or air pistol, this would tend to aggravate the situation and probably would result in that elderly person finding himself being seriously injured.” He said that the police would approach Neighbourhood Support group leaders to ask them if they could find out who had bought guns recently. The police would then see the person, try to allay their fears and suggest ways they could prevent crime without using a firearm.

"I would be much happier if those persons who have spent money to obtain those types of weapons would use that money in a crime-preven-tion way that would stop the offender from gaining entry.” Mr Wooders warned gun owners that there had to be justification in using a firearm for protection. “If a burglar entered a house unarmed, one could say one was not justified in shooting him ... one must look at the whole circumstances.” Statistics showed that Palmerston North had not got to the stage where its residents had to live in fear and trepidation, Mr Wooders said.