POLICE MALADMINISTRATION.

NZ Truth, Issue 98, 4 May 1907, Page 1

POLICE MALADMINISTRATION.

It would b& iaterestittfi? to learn", if Police Commissioner Dinnie could be i prevailed upon to wag his official itongue, the why and the wherefore of the boss bobby's trip to Auckland during Ihe week. Presumably, his ;visit is an official one, he no doubt -wishes to see for himself how police matters at present stand m the Northern city, and the possibility is, he will see, as much and learn as much as his official 'underlings there will N permit Mm./to see and hear. It is a million of money to a mince pie that ; boss bobby Dlnnie will only get but an inkling. '. of tfoa ructions that- seem to be eternally disturbing the* peace, good-will, and proper official spirit of the Auckland force, and, therefore, not being made acquainted with what is practically, common m -Auckland, Dinnie, perforce, will do nothing, and, consequently, things will go on m their sweet old neace-distuEbing way. Auckland's boss bofrby is one Cullen. mho for his autocratic manner m idea ling with everybody who comes into contact with him has been properly called, and continues to : ibe called, the Czar of the New. Zealand Police /Force, ''a^a- 'ia&Hiße' veryutmost he is a tinpot Czar, whom nofcody but the subordinate "bobby" entertains any respect, for, or even, fear of. Still; Cullen, fry. rank an Inspector, is a person m auiSiOJfrty, and m the opinion of "Truth," which might be' worth little, and m the opinions of others which are worthy of credit, Cullen is a very* undesirable person, to be m authority, and a police inspector -in any community has a good deal more weight and influence than he should have. For some time past the Auckland police body .has. been a very unhappy family, and this intestine strife is due m the main to the fact that' the "Czair" encourages pimping m the rank- and file, and, as is ever the case, the pimp prospers and is promoted, while the decent and respectable, thorough officer lags like' a "stuffed" racehorse. Nowhere more than m Auckland has there been so many promotions' aM transfers from one. district to another, and the reason is not bard to seek. The pimps m the "foorce" who run to Cullen with tittle-tattle, but to which Cullen lends .an ever ready, ear,, have made things so uncomfort&ble and 60 hot for others, tba<t. the mea effected have either asked for or welcomed a transfer to other, districts. Other policemen have resigned. The reward of the pimps have teen promotion. Now this Cullen chap did not figure too cleanly m the Police Enquiry held some time ago, and if .we recollect aright a Sub-Inspector named Black made no bones of the iact that he: disldked Cullen, because of his fondness for employing, and encouraging pimps to spy and report on the doings of their fellow, officers. People with any manhood m them at , all hate and despise pimps, and hav/e very little time for the man who uses pimps and enpourages pimping, and where the prompter of a pimp is a Police Inspector, the effect is nos difficult to perceive. Auckland's police force must be a sadly and badly-managed one, i£ the sergeants and other responsible officers cannot be trustedand relied upon to do tfceir duty to the tax-payer. It is with these officers that the pToper conduct of the men rests. This is not sufficient for Cullen. He must needs employ 7>imps, who prompted by the hopes of promotion, even make their secret and sinister reports on ' their ow» superiors. Resignations have been the consequence, disorganisation and dissatisfaction m the ranks was only inevitable. This Cullen person wants badly kept m check, as he is ambitious, and has his eye on the Commisskraefship, which, of course, is a little matter which will interest ffche present occupant of that office. Commissioner Dianie might know, $Itftois3i fee has <gpft«a.lfcß» of what

is happaning almost 'daily m? Auckland, and if he wishes to be ! kai pai •with the men, and even the sergeants and responsible officers, he will at once give the "Czar" to understand that pimps and spies are not fit associates for i^hondrable men. Cullen should be officially censured, and made to eat the leek,, the prompiter of pimps cannot be censured too severely, and as this cocky chap, Cullen the '■'Czar," is after the Commisai-cnership it might just as. well be known what land of individual he is. Such as he is not a proper_person to be a Police Inspector, and certainly he cannot be stood as a Commissioner. A grave injustice has been done to a detective and other police officers, who have drifted to ' Wellington, Christohurch, and Napier. One well-known police pimp has been made a sergeant ■ and the appointment fairly stinks m the nostrils of those who are m the 4 position of knowing wliat is KoinK on. If Commissioner Dinnie is content to •sta-nd\ idly ty and permit the rank and file to be so shamelessly treatjed, and to honest, har-d-workinir, pajins-takdng offsoers so derided and penalised, then ! '*Truth," ithough; it never did think much of Dinnie, will begin to think that he is frightened ,ori Culien. ■ While on this police I subject, it wcwiid also be useful, m the public interest, to know wihat ComnHssionier Bi<nnie thinks of the' remarks of the Supreme , Court i Judges m up-holding the conviction ;for burglary of the man Findlay. Throuigh the blundering of the..police, the murder of that poor misogndstic school-man Rennie, at Papakaio, is unrequited.- , Murder, iit is said( will out. It came out after Pindlay was acquitted of the crime, but with ffiddi-tional evidence, he was held to be g-uilty of burglary, aver-id-ict tantamount to ©uilty of murder. From the onset tie pol^e bungled and blundered, and Dinnie himrelf even took a hand m the search for cues.. On less conclusive evidence than that tendered against Firtdlay, many men have gone to the gallows. It is "vain to cry for Findlay's life. That his crime is unrequited will be an ■ eve-rlasting monument of the inepiritode, the blunder-' ing and baauling; of the New Zealand Police force, as controlled by Scotland Yard : Sleuth Dinnie.' That this man Findlay sliould have escaped the legal consequences of the crime of murder, and the five Judges who heard the appeal for a re-hear-ing of the trial of a charge of burglary, have more than implied that he is guiilty of murder, cannot be other regarded than as V monstrous miscarriage of justice. Murder y bloody, cruel and cowardly has been committed ; a poor lonely, hairmless, thoug>b certaanly eccentric man, was shot dead m. his bed, and the mo;tive was robbery. The robbery, on more . than circumistantial evidence has been proved ■; the murder was not, because the police, aftefr it was too late, succeeded m connecting Findlay with the crime, on evidence which justified iiis conviction for Ibiurgiary. Finger-prirflts were ruthlessly destroy-. 1 ed, enly a careless search for the murdered man's missing property was made, and yet the judges express their regret at the bungling of the police. It is a matter for more ster n judicial censure than idle and vain regret. If the judiges cannot be relied to express more than regret at this miserable 'bungle of the police then let the Government take a hand and see what a change would do. Far better is it that 99 guilty men 'should escape than that one innocent man sEould be punished. Either the man Findlay is a blood-thiirsty monster or he is a victim of extraordinary circumstances. On the evidence, on the Supreme Court finding, Findlay must be regarded as an extremely for tun-ate man. The i-ver-age murderer gets short shrift ntiwfti&ags.