POLICE RESIGNATIONS

Evening Star, Issue 25730, 1 March 1946, Page 8

POLICE RESIGNATIONS

Serious Position Revealed City Beats Undermanned Wholesale Discontent in Ranks

Resignations from the police force in recent months not only add point to the widespread discontent amongst serving members; but have created a position that has actual dangers for the general public. For the force is now unable adequately to police the city. The first duty of a policeman—stopping crime at the source, before the boundaries of the law have been overstepped—has become more and more impossibe of attainment. There are insufficient policemen in the force to cover the catoj beats, in -which task they are intended to be, by the mere fbroe of their presence, a warning to

Some quarters have found a ready explanation for the spate of resignations in Teoent months. They claim that a large number of men joined the force to escape war service, and now that there is no danger that they might be sent overseas', are leaving to undertake the work in which they were originally engaged. That there is some truth in this accusation is a thesis lent colour by the fact that in wan-time the service had no difficulty whatsoever in maintaining recruitment up .to the full number that the authorities estimated was necessary. It is only since the war that the service has declined, though many of the features which have given"rise to dissatisfaction amongst the men

Methods Outdated

Meanwhile police methods (it is asserted) have become •' in this country outmoded, and the service retrogressive. _ Instead of its duties and responsibilities having been expanded to meet and cope with changing conditions in the modern world, the service has been whittled down and its scope restricted. As far back as 1878 there was one policeman to every 944 other citizens. In 1939 the proportion was one to 1,064, and this in spite of the number of complications iii the way of additional laws and new modes of living. But the police task or ensuring lawfulness .and smooth order has to a large extent been passed into other hands. Two other organisations are responsible for traffic control. If air search is necessary, the Air Force has to'be called in. The Income Tax Department has huge staffs engaged solely in combating that form of passive lawlessness. Registrations, whether of dogs, motor cars, drivers, or radios should (it is claimed) all b& in the hands: of the police, and thp fact that they are not has, over the years, caused endless complications in. the smooth functioning of the law, and often brought the charge of inefficiency against a hard-working service. If these matters and others were to be brought under the direct control of the police, the chief cause for discontent in the service—slow promotion—would disappear. And, claim members of the service, the result

Night Duty Too Frequent

The constable has another reason for resentment when he sees the traffic policeman on the job. This is, that the traffic policeman is taking the cream of the day duty. If traffic were the work of the Police Force, then day duty would be more frequent. Instead of, for instance, working one day at day duty and then one on night, the constable would have anything up to six weeks' day duty before he was

Air Branch Necessary

It is also contended that there should be developed an air branch of the Police Force. At least four aeroplanes should be stationed at strategic points throughout the country. Never a summer passes in Dunedin but amateurs get lost in yachts and other small craft, searches are carried out in rough country, quick transportation is needed for men or supplies. At present, recourse is had to Wigram aerodrome, but that means several hours have elapsed before an aircraft is available here.

Other Duties

Another province in which it has been suggested that the police should operafe is the granting of warrants of fitness to motor vehicles. In this case, personnel now employed could be taken over by the service' at no greater expense than is laid out now. Probably

Cheese-paring Administration

" If the Police Department had been maintained at its required strength, and the measures taken which were ultimately put at the disposal of the traffic department and city traffic branches, a far more efficient and cooperative control would have been established, developed, and maintained," a local police officer told the ' Star,' discussing this subject. "In the beginning, when the control was in the hands of the police, and the question of extending police ranks to meet the situation arose, the excuse of expense was invariably brought forward. The energy of administrators was always

Promotions Infrequent

Expansion of the police force in these directions would have the immediate effect of making promotion a little easier. The resignations which are at present causing concern are mainly from the constables' ranks. This means that promotion is further off than ever, for there have beert several instances recently of sergeants doing the work of constables. A constable or detective at present averages 17 years before being promoted to sergeant. A senior sergeant will have about 25 years in, and an inspector about 30. This means that the administrative work is being done by men who have become set in estab-

the intending transgressor and a source of confidence to the law-abiding citizen. That this is not idle talk can be shown by a few figures. There have been recent occasions jn Dunedin when the night force, going out on the beat, has consisted of only three or four men, whereas it has been customary to regard 14 men as essential to cover the night beats, and nine for the daybeats. In addition, suburban and other policemen have been heavily burdened with work, and there are very few men in the lower ranks of the service who are at all satisfied with a job in which they had originally intended to spend a lifetime.

War-time Recruitment Satisfactory

were in existence right through rAe period. On the other hand, men who' have paraded for the last time include a goodly proportion of mature constables and sergeants—men who once thought that they would see their useful lifetimes out in police work. With every defection, the posi- • , tion of the remaining men becomes harder. Those who have left are in nearly all instances doing well, and their erstwhile colleagues must feel an urgent temptation to follow suit. Consequently they keep their eyes open for opportunities, and, being in touch with all sections of the community, it is not long, as a rule, before opportunity presents Itself.

would be a greater efficiency at less cost to the country than is now the case. Take an example, not an uncommon one, of a visitor to the city whose car is stolen at night. He reports the matter to the police, but at the moment is unable to give the registration number. To-day, the police must wait until the requisite department—the Post Office—is open before they can ascertain the number. If registration of cars was in the hands of the police, the number, even if the car were registered in a distant city, would be available in a matter of minutes, night or day; Members of the force claim that the Transport Department official, and the city traffic policeman are quite unnecessary. They walk the same streets as the policeman, but are interested in only one thing—watching traffic. If a car has been stolen, the official is not supplied with the number or the description. He does not give confidence to the citizen that his property and person are under protection, as the policeman does by the mere wearing of his uniform. And his appearance causes no dismay in the hearts of intending malefactors. There is a strong feeling in the Police Force that, at 'little expense, these men could be put through a course and converted into policemen. They would then be able to do the same work as they do to-day in conjunction with normal police duties.

needed for his week or two of night work. At a race meeting the traffic man and the policeman both attend. The traffic man is busy only until an early hour in the afternoon. Then he can shed his coat and become a spectator. His presence does nothing to suppress petty racecourse crime. But the policeman is on duty throughout the whole of the meeting, and could do with the aid of the other.

It has been suggested that the police should be provided with planes of the Avro-Anson type that was so useful throughout the war. Cheap to run, able to land in a small space, carrying six or seven men or a quantity of supplies, these planes would be invaluable m such emergencies as were created by the recent bush fires, and it is not beyond the bounds of probability that, manned by trained men, they would have saved far and above their entire cost in this one operation.

administrative costs could be heavily cut It seems absurd that the police, who have so much to do with them, do not have control of granting drivers' licenses. There are also dozens of other departments that lie within the province of the Police Force.

pronounced in maintaining our service at a bare minimum, sacrificing efficiency, and developing only to meet the demands of utter necessity." Equipment is an urgent need. Fast, strong patrol cars with the most modern communicating appliances are to the forefront in police requirements. There are occasions when such items as walkie-talkie radios would be a godsend in rough-country work. A cable message this week indicates that in other countries criminals are already using this class of gear; and it is not out of the way to ask that for once the policeman should be ahead of the criminal.

lished ways, and are at an age when they will not encourage any changes if it is possible to avoid them. Members of the police force allege that this is one reason why the service has been more or less in a rut. A grievance of the. ambitious man, too, is concerned with the number of transfers when promotion is in line. These are arranged at ever-shortening intervals as rank increases, and have a certain value in broadening the experience of the man concerned. At the same time, the service itself is kept within narrowing limits. In any case, the record of recent resignations proves an intense dissatisfaction.

Increase in Crime

Burglary and other petty crime are on the increase in the city, particularly amongst juveniles. This was forecast by social workers long ago, as a direct result of less parental control during the war years. Those who use the city streets and by-ways in the late hours know, however, that the policeman on his beat is far less frequently met than he used to be, and it is at least possible that this circumstance has something to do with the minor crime wave, which has reached even such a backwater as Dunedin. In any case, the first duty of a policeman is, by" his presence, to prevent crime so far as is possible, not to wait for its commission to step in and arrest the offender.

Authority Unperturbed

The attitude of the authorities towards the resignations seems to .have been expressed by a shrugging of the shoulders, and a gentle murmur of protest. No attempt seems to have been made to get to the root of the trouble, and no amelioration of conditions, no expansion of the scope of the service, seems to have been introduced or even under consideration.

As far as can be ascertained, no representation has been made through the Rehabilitation Department or in any other way of putting the service as a career before returned men. The sole reported exception to this, an address to airmen demobilising at one camp, resulted in a half-dozen recruits. But if modernisation of ,the service were taken in hand, returned servicemen would be the best pool on which to draw. They are trained in the use of modern equipment, and have learned discipline and service deportment. This avenue of recruitment has hardly been considered by the authorities.

Details of Shortage

On November 28 last, it was reported in the ' Star ' that the Prime Minister in the House claimed that most, of the men resigning from the force were going on the land. Trades chosen by recent resignees in the Dunedin area include painting, plastering, and the grocery business. On November 23 the Commissioner of Police had stated that the force was 140 constables under strength. To-day that figure has been greatly increased, and it can safely be said that the Dominion force 'is well over 200 short, even on the limited requirements of the present schedule of work. This shortage in actual practice is carried by the cities. Where there is a country vacancy, a man stationed in the nearest • centre is sent out to fill the gap. In Mosgiel there is a position that has . remained unfilled for a good many weeks. During all this time a man from Dunedin has been holding the fort. If there is an hotel to be raided, city beats must suffer from a lack of police attention. In 1939 the strength of the whole New Zealand force was 27 officers, 148 non-commissioned officers, and 1,264 constables and detectives, so it can readily be seen that the defection of over 200 of- the lower ranks leaves the service in a parlous condition, talking into consideration the number of country positions that, must be kept filled. It is not only the police force that has reason for dissatisfaction with the the service. The citizen is not getting the protection that is his right.