POLICE ENQUIRY

Greymouth Evening Star, 11 October 1928, Page 5

POLICE ENQUIRY

HOME OFFICE EVIDENCE WHY MURDERERS CONFESS (Australian Press Assn.—United Service.) (By Cable—Press Assn.—Copyright.) (Recd. October 11, 2.45 p.m.) LONDON, October 10. “Our main effort must be to restore mutual confidence in the police by the public, which has hitherto been a striking, happy feature of national organisation, the absence of which will undermine, even gravely imperil, the basis of our social fabric,’’ said Lord Lee, presiding at the first public sitting of the Police Commission. He added that he would not endeavour to restore confidence by whitewashing, but by discovery and removal of any causes of friction and complaint It must always be remembered that a law-abiding community did not wish to see the police discredited. In any case, tflie diminution of confidence about which much has been said, was possibly exaggerated. The Commission was not trying the police, and not reopening the recent notorious cases, which had already been settled in the Courts.

Lord Lee added that the questionaire had already been sent to the Judges, Government Departments, and police throughout the country, and other individuals and associations would be invited to reply. Witnesses would, be selected after the perusal thereof.

Sir Ernley Blackwell, the first witness, advocated a policeman’s oath, as a King’s officer, and general instructions should, be standardised throughout the country. Although the Home Secretary did not believe in overprecise regulations, he was expecting the police to exercise discretion. He expressed the opinion that the public generally believed the police were more powerful than they really were. He explained that except for the power of arrest, the police were jittle different from citizens. He denied that the public was not sympathetic towards the police, and added there was no ground for the supposition that the police exceeded their powers of inquiry. His twenty-two years’ experience showed that there wete few convicted persons who complained of the third degree. Lord Lee, commenting on <the frequency of muder confessions, said it seemed a little odd that so many criminals were anxious to hang themselves.

Sir E. Blackwell replied that they usually made a statement, hoping that the cliai’ge would be reduced to manslaughter. He said: “You must rely on the tradition of the force and careful selection of superior officers. You cannot run the police on the basis of distrust and suspicion.”