NCJ Number
70603
Journal
Police Review Volume: 88 Dated: (July 18, 1980) Pages: 1492-1496
Date Published
1980
Length
5 pages
Annotation
Police officers in Scotland were interviewed on their duties and opinions for this journal article.
Abstract
The Craigmillar police station in Edinburgh was the first visited. This station is responsible for a section of the city with a high unemployment rate and a large slum area. One of the major problems encountered was juvenile delinquency, and a recurrent offense was the setting of small fires. The Dalkeith police station is located outside the city and serves a working class population. Policemen at this station were concerned about the number of new, young recruits and their lack of life experience and of physical strength, and also about the effects of the new Bail Act which allows more offenders to be released on bail. Most officers had to handle caseloads as large as 240 incidents, and some cases came to trial only after 2 years and were then lost because witnesses could no longer be sure of the offenders' identities. At the Lauder border police station in the country, the caseloads were much lighter, and incidents seldom occurred during the night. Further from the city, the Earlston police station was staffed by only two policemen. Night shifts were not necessary here at all. At the Southside Police Station in Edinburgh, policemen explained that the violence involved in police work had been overemphasized and that the less glamorous aspects of the job had been overlooked. The prospects for women in this station were considered to be very good. Unfortunately, the position of beat constable had been neglected in the station's recrutment literature, one officer noted, and too much emphasis had been placed on the prospects of promotion and specialization. And once again, the inexperience of the new, 18-year-old recruits was lamented. Footnotes or references are not included.