Police Try Common Sense ... And Gain Respect

In a liberal democracy, it is the province of the (adult) citizens to decide not only the laws by which they wish to be governed, but also the manner in which those laws should be policed. By this last statement, I mean: should a particular law always be enforced to the letter or should the police be given (and expected to use) the discretion to ignore minor breaches in certain circumstances?

So what is an example of how we do want to be policed?

This afternoon, I was unloading the shopping from the boot. It was a fair bit, as it was New Year’s Eve and people were coming over. No parking spots were available in the strip outside my house as several had been taken by non-residents wanting an easy walk down to the beach (fuck off, you arseholes). So I put the hazard lights on and pulled up in the no standing zone on the corner.

As I was unloading, the police drove past. They looked at me. I gave them a wave and shrugged my shoulders. They just nodded and drove on. I noticed them driving back past as I was parking the car about 100m up the street a couple of minutes later. If I’d still been there, I’d probably have gotten a ticket, but they’d seen I am a local resident and given me some leeway.

This is the type of law enforcement the vast majority of citizens want and expect: mature police with an interest in being part of the local community, using common sense and discretion for small events; technically illegal, but doing no material harm.

Other examples of such small breaches of the law I’m referring to are: driving at 5 - 10 km/h over the speed limit, puffing on a joint around the corner from the pub, having a piss behind a tree, two blokes (both at fault) getting into a fight where neither was seriously hurt, some people getting drunk at a party and going for a nude run.

All of these examples are the types of events where most people would consider a fine or an arrest neither fair and proportionate to the act nor a sensible and effective use of police resources. They would expect the police to tell the perpetrators to stop because their behaviour is illegal and just move on if their instructions were complied with. If instead the “persons spoken to” mouthed off and / or continued, most people would also agree that they brought the fine or arrest on themselves.

It doesn’t matter whether or not you think smoking a joint should be legal. It currently isn’t and the police are put in a difficult situation if they encounter people doing it. There is however a view amongst much of the community that given the trivial nature of the offence, if you are polite to the police, comply with their instructions and don’t antagonize them in such situations, they should in turn leave you alone.

I’ve seen examples of exactly this occurring. I’ve also seen the police being heavy handed in similar situations and thus losing trust and respect.

Citizens expect police to see themselves as part of the community. Part of this is understanding how the public expects to be policed and acting accordingly. If the police service does this in a mature way, in return they will find a respectful and co-operative community.