Here is the unsurprising conclusion of the investigation into badgeless APEC cops:
Police commissioner Andrew Scipione ordered an internal inquiry by the Professional Standards Command, which found there were real concerns that pin-backed name tags could be used as weapons against officers.
This is a bit strange. The SMH reported last week that “[t]he badges are made out of cotton and are attached to an officer’s blue riot overalls with velcro.” It’s hard to see how velcro could be used as a weapon, except perhaps as identification evidence.
But let’s give them Scipione the benefit of the doubt. He went on to say that “[i]n future, all police officers attending protests would be issued with cloth identification tags”, implying that some people still had pins, and these were the ones who took off their badges. Okay. Have a look at these photos:
The dark rectangle on the right of their chests is the velcro to which the identification patch is attached. These officers therefore can not be afraid of pin-pricks.
Frankly, this shows that the Professional Standards Command inquiry is a whitewash. Police thugs oppose name badges because they want to crack heads and hide in a sea of blue overalls, caps and dark sunglasses. And according to one of them they did so because “[i]t’s one of the policies the bosses have this week.”
If we’re going to hand cops massive powers to search, to detain, and to “get physical” with people, then they ought to be held accountable for the exercise of those powers. That’s not possible if they’re hiding from scrutiny — apparently on the instruction of their superiors, and with the Professional Standards Command turning a blind eye. In these circumstances, Weezil’s proposal seems to have merit.
AS I said in my APEC Post, WA Police Uniforms have the Officer’s Surname and Police Number on a patch which sewn into the unform like this.
http://www.burglarbeware.wa.gov.au/images/police-main.jpg
Dunno why other states don’t adopt this method.
Because that way theey would be able to be identified?
No problems with this, as long as covering your face during a protest is an arrestable offence.
After all fairs fair??
Police unions should support this. It will help cut down on the high theft rate of uniforms in stations.
Have a look at the comments, here, under the ABC online article. Not a ringing endorsement of todays decision , you would have to say.
http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2007/09/18/2036356.htm
You mean like the 3 masked undercover cops with rocks in their hands, caught on video, posing as protesters in Canada recently?
They were not arrested.
hannah’s dad
Read about that, they should be prosecuted, that sort of manipulation isnt acceptable. And whoever authorised it should be out on their arse as well.
Its not a zero sum game, well behaved demonstrators and coppers would inprove it all
I have often read that the line between sanity and insanity is a very fine one. I think the same theory applies to police and criminals.
Why would any decent human being want to be a cop (or prison officer)?
I really don’t like Scipione and I have a feeling that under his watch NSW police are going to become a law unto themselves, more so than they already are.
Are these scenes from NSW when they finally get TASERS?
The could have been all solved on a “win win” basis if the lads on Velcro Blue Line had been sponsored by Lincraft and/or Spotlight. (Yes, that “Spotlight” wot are fine upholders of Workchaucers.)
I’m a bit confused. Since when have Police been allowed to NOT identify themselves to members of the public?
Hell, we’re just their employers!
Add this to the latest video of an arrest in the USA for asking John Kerry about Skull n Bones and we are heading towards Fascism.
I begin to wonder if Scipione is really in charge and this so-called investigation is as shonky as it sounds. In other words that a test of wills is going on between commissioner and Iemma government and the police union. It has all the hallmarks… with Scipione saying that by law identification badges should have been worn but under the circumstances of securing APEC the danger of the pins et cetera. Round one to the union.
And for mine, I’ll take The Chaser’s POV on the whole shebang over any congratulatory backslapping on security success by cops and politicians of all colours any day.
Add it to the list gandhi….
Student Tasered by Police in UCLA Library
In regards to the the Kerry incident, most amusing watching the RWDBloggers over at Tim B’liar trying to work out if they supported the cops or not…
The cop I spoke to in front of one of their riot buses had a name badge on because i used his name when i said “Hey Steve can i have six jam doughnuts please?”
Atticus wrote:
“The dark rectangle on the right of their chests is the velcro to which the identification patch is attached. These officers therefore can not be afraid of pin-pricks.
Frankly, this shows that the Professional Standards Command inquiry is a whitewash.”
Thats a pretty big call by you Atticus.
So you categorically know for a fact, that all those police with the vacant velcro, have been given cloth identification patches that could be attached there?
Or do these officers still have the old pin type badges?
It doesn’t make any sense that the rest of the officers present would have velcro id and a small number wouldn’t. What are we talking about here? A velcro shortage? Trouble at the commissariat store?
All of the above Mark.
Keep in mind that the police officers came from stations and police districts all over the state.
Look how long it took to change the Qld police from slouch hats to the felt boaters they wear nowdays.
So they have the uniforms with the velcro but without the velcro patch? Defies belief, steve.
Mark: Your time in a uniformed disciplined service must have been quite short.
Things like being issued with (say) a velcro strip, but not the name tag is not….er… unknown in military/police service.
“Defies belief”? Actually: Situation normal!
It’s possible the police were only issued with pinned name tags and they genuinely feared that they would be used as weapons against them, so they took them off.
It’s also possible the police removed their name tags (velcro or pinned) so that they could anonymously beat the living shit out of some protestors, should the opportunity have arisen. But that would be unlawful.
I prefer to believe the first explanation. No member of the NSW Police would ever do anything unlawful. It just isn’t in their culture.
steve, so how was it that only 16 out of how many cops there missed the velcro name tags?
It’s a bad look by Scipione. Two minutes in the job, and faced with incontrovertible evidence of police misconduct, he gives an explanation which draws a big horse laugh.
Then there was his less than glorious performance after the Chaser fiasco.
Scipione is fast looking liking one of his recent predecessors, Tony Lauer (”there is no systemic corruption in the NSW police force”).
NSW needs a lot of things, but a police commissioner who is a never ending source of material for the Comedy Channel isn’t one of them.