How much "action" can you get in police?
Discussion
What police roles get the most action? My totally uninformed guess is that most roles spend more than half their time either doing paperwork, hanging around waiting for things to happen, or training. Is this remotely true?
In road policing does anyone get to do several proper* pursuits a week or is it more like a yearly thing?
*i.e. failing to stop, rather than tailing some rep in a vauxhall at 110 for 2 miles before pulling them
In road policing does anyone get to do several proper* pursuits a week or is it more like a yearly thing?
*i.e. failing to stop, rather than tailing some rep in a vauxhall at 110 for 2 miles before pulling them
Edited by Somewhatfoolish on Friday 15th November 14:05
Jamescrs said:
In terms of volume of incidents your typical patrol/ response officer sees more than most but a lot will depend on where you are based, obviously in a big town or city you will see "more action" than a rural area.
What you wrote seems obvious, but I think the OP is fishing for a less realistic answer than this when he wrote ‘action’.Tommo87 said:
Jamescrs said:
In terms of volume of incidents your typical patrol/ response officer sees more than most but a lot will depend on where you are based, obviously in a big town or city you will see "more action" than a rural area.
What you wrote seems obvious, but I think the OP is fishing for a less realistic answer than this when he wrote ‘action’.timbob said:
I tasered somebody one time. From turfing up at the job to the guy being tasered and handcuffed on the floor took less than 30 seconds.
I spent the next 9 hours doing the paperwork.
I saw an officer "pursuing" a person of interest in his fastest waddle the other day. The crim was hurtling along at a similar leisurely pace. Had it not been for an expertly executed tackle by a ~1 foot high fence, I suspect the officer would've spent 9 hours chasing him and warning him about his taser! I spent the next 9 hours doing the paperwork.
In all seriousness, how much bureaucracy is involved in police work? It sounds mightily excessive and a major drain on resources.
Depends what you mean by action.
If you mean fun stuff then likely the specialisms away from normal response policing are more likely to have a better fun to paperwork ratio. Firearms, support groups, surveillance officers, dog handlers (arguably the best job) etc.
Remember most calls to the police are non-crime - it was over 80% years ago and I expect it hasn't changed.
Most police work is lame and boring.
If you mean fun stuff then likely the specialisms away from normal response policing are more likely to have a better fun to paperwork ratio. Firearms, support groups, surveillance officers, dog handlers (arguably the best job) etc.
Remember most calls to the police are non-crime - it was over 80% years ago and I expect it hasn't changed.
Most police work is lame and boring.
Somewhatfoolish said:
What police roles get the most action? My totally uninformed guess is that most roles spend more than half their time either doing paperwork, hanging around waiting for things to happen, or training. Is this remotely true?
In road policing does anyone get to do several proper* pursuits a week or is it more like a yearly thing?
*i.e. failing to stop, rather than tailing some rep in a vauxhall at 110 for 2 miles before pulling them
Roads Policing here. In road policing does anyone get to do several proper* pursuits a week or is it more like a yearly thing?
*i.e. failing to stop, rather than tailing some rep in a vauxhall at 110 for 2 miles before pulling them
Edited by Somewhatfoolish on Friday 15th November 14:05
Been on the department for two and a half years. I've had one pursuit in that time. That was a couple of weeks ago.
Today was my first day back since Monday. I spent it doing paperwork for three arrests I had over the previous weekend. A case file for a crash in February.
Tomorrow will be more paperwork unless a crash comes in.
RazerSauber said:
In all seriousness, how much bureaucracy is involved in police work? It sounds mightily excessive and a major drain on resources.
Arrest, transport, book in to custody, house search, record crime, go and get the statement, collect the CCTV disc/USB/remote upload and edit it, maybe an interview, complete the case file. That’s assuming the prisoner is fit for process and the security can sort the CCTV.
LosingGrip said:
Somewhatfoolish said:
What police roles get the most action? My totally uninformed guess is that most roles spend more than half their time either doing paperwork, hanging around waiting for things to happen, or training. Is this remotely true?
In road policing does anyone get to do several proper* pursuits a week or is it more like a yearly thing?
*i.e. failing to stop, rather than tailing some rep in a vauxhall at 110 for 2 miles before pulling them
Roads Policing here. In road policing does anyone get to do several proper* pursuits a week or is it more like a yearly thing?
*i.e. failing to stop, rather than tailing some rep in a vauxhall at 110 for 2 miles before pulling them
Edited by Somewhatfoolish on Friday 15th November 14:05
Been on the department for two and a half years. I've had one pursuit in that time. That was a couple of weeks ago.
Today was my first day back since Monday. I spent it doing paperwork for three arrests I had over the previous weekend. A case file for a crash in February.
Tomorrow will be more paperwork unless a crash comes in.
(would it be more efficient if there were office workers doing the paperwork? Or is the paperwork not even needed in the first place?)
(I know doctors think that NHS "paper pushers" have often been cut too much so they end up doing the paper pushing!)
(and to the guy who was talking about an agenda this wasn't an agenda, it's just an obvious reaction to what's been said so far)
(I know doctors think that NHS "paper pushers" have often been cut too much so they end up doing the paper pushing!)
(and to the guy who was talking about an agenda this wasn't an agenda, it's just an obvious reaction to what's been said so far)
It reminds me of the possible dialogue had I applied to join the RAF...
'Why do you want to join the RAF?'
'Because I want to shoot things down'.
Probably wouldn't have gone down well...!
OP might do better to train as a cameraman and then he can be in the back seat on those Cops'n'Robbers programmes.
'Why do you want to join the RAF?'
'Because I want to shoot things down'.
Probably wouldn't have gone down well...!
OP might do better to train as a cameraman and then he can be in the back seat on those Cops'n'Robbers programmes.
LosingGrip said:
Today was my first day back since Monday. I spent it doing paperwork for three arrests I had over the previous weekend. A case file for a crash in February.
Tomorrow will be more paperwork unless a crash comes in.
Can you just declare yourself to be unavailable - except for emergencies - because "paperwork"?Tomorrow will be more paperwork unless a crash comes in.
Simpo Two said:
It reminds me of the possible dialogue had I applied to join the RAF...
'Why do you want to join the RAF?'
'Because I want to shoot things down'.
Probably wouldn't have gone down well...!
OP might do better to train as a cameraman and then he can be in the back seat on those Cops'n'Robbers programmes.
I am totally unsuited to the police, they don't have to worry about me trying to join 'Why do you want to join the RAF?'
'Because I want to shoot things down'.
Probably wouldn't have gone down well...!
OP might do better to train as a cameraman and then he can be in the back seat on those Cops'n'Robbers programmes.
Also totally unsuited to being a cameraman.
And all of that before even considering about keeping Mrs Foolish in the manner in which she is accustomed.
Forget about me. My role is to ask questions I think are interesting. Anyone else could have asked this question and hopefully get same answers l. That's the spirit in which I ask.
(I am kinda interested in the tag along for an evening thing they do one day. Although if I do it it probs won't be my local force - I'll try to make it MET instead)
Edited by Somewhatfoolish on Friday 15th November 23:27
[quote=Somewhatfoolish](would it be more efficient if there were office workers doing the paperwork? Or is the paperwork not even needed in the first place?)
Yes. And that used to be the way.
A full file NGAP can take an Officer days to build, because that won't be the only thing you do for those days. You don't need to be an Officer to build a casefile.
You don't need to be an Officer to interview a suspect.
You don't need to be an Officer to record Missing People.
I used to work on Response. The team that deal with emergency calls.
There would be days where you didn't respond to a single emergency because you were doing anything but.
Yes. And that used to be the way.
A full file NGAP can take an Officer days to build, because that won't be the only thing you do for those days. You don't need to be an Officer to build a casefile.
You don't need to be an Officer to interview a suspect.
You don't need to be an Officer to record Missing People.
I used to work on Response. The team that deal with emergency calls.
There would be days where you didn't respond to a single emergency because you were doing anything but.
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