Those who follow my Twitter (@TomGaymor) will know that in
December, last month, I had the privilege of following a Metropolitan Police
Emergency Response Team for four of their shifts. I do not use the word
‘privilege’ lightly, as being invited into such a critically important work
environment to sample the greater good of the work these officers selflessly
deliver around the clock, is not your everyday experience. In fact, for me it
was far from an everyday experience. My background as a professional sportsman
turned TV Presenter/Commentator meant that prior to these shifts I had little
or no experience of the work undertaken by the police, bar the propaganda one
reads in the media. With that in mind, the purpose of this blog is to give those
of you who are interested a true insight into my experiences over the four
shifts, and without revealing suspects names or locations, a description of some the
calls we attended. I will detail the work of the officers, but also how I felt
as a law abiding citizen experiencing some of these scenes for real.
The team I followed for my four shifts was Kingston’s
Emergency Response Team A. Operating out of Kingston Metropolitan Police Station;
the team consists of seventeen Police Constables, two Sergeants, or ‘Skip’ as
he is known by the PCs, and an Inspector. Prior to my time with Team A, we
decided that in order to achieve a varied viewpoint of their work I would cover
an ‘early’ shift, two ‘late’ shifts and a ‘night’ shift.
My first shift with Team A was an ‘early’. I arrived at
Kingston Police Station at 05:30AM, just in time to see the suspects who had
stayed overnight at Her Majesty’s pleasure, leaving for court to be charged. I
was shown immediately to the briefing room and introduced to the team. I was instantly
made to feel very welcome, and each and every team member made a conscious
effort to talk to me. The briefing was led by the Sergeant, who assigned the
officers their duties and also briefed them on any handovers from the night
shift. The team then went through new and current intelligence; however due to
the sensitivity of the information being distributed, I sat this part out. The
two officers (PC Ellis and PC Resteghini) I was shadowing were one of two teams
on that shift to be carrying Tasers. After the briefing we went immediately to
the armoury so the two teams could be issued with their Tasers and I could pick
up my body armour. It was now that my excitement turned to realisation and
apprehension. That apprehension never left me, throughout
the four shifts; the realisation that, as a police officer, you never know what
lies ahead. The Tasers and the body armour cemented this point for me.
It was not long after visiting the armoury that we were out
on patrol and off to our first call. I may be talking for myself here, but ever
since I was a little boy I have always been curious when it comes to emergency
vehicles with their flashing blue lights and blaring sirens. I was always
intrigued to know where they were going and what the emergency was. Now I was
sat in the back of a police car on blue lights and sirens, heading towards a
reported burglary with the suspect reported ‘still on site’. My heart was
pounding and my thoughts were full of apprehension and intrigue. I remember
thinking how must the officers be feeling? How do they manage the adrenalin?
Yet they came across so controlled and serene, simply going through their
processes and protocols. We arrived on scene within minutes, the suspect had already
left the residential property and the owner was out. Surprisingly, it was not
long before the suspect returned to the property, drunk. Unsurprisingly, he was
promptly arrested by the officers for burglary. The suspect then proceeded to
subject the officers to a torrent of verbal abuse, quite incredible considering
how respectfully they had treated him. It quickly became evident from the Intel
(intelligence) received that the suspect had just been released from court that
morning. He was also subject to a
restraining order, based on a history of domestic violence towards the victim,
whose house he had broken into. Once the abusive suspect had left for the
police station in the police van, the officers I was with set about securing
the victim’s house, a job they are not obliged to do. PC Ellis and PC
Resteghini could not raise the victim, who was at work, so they took it upon
themselves to source some wood and board up her broken window to ensure the
safety of the property. I was particularly touched by the sentiment of the
officers, clearly going above and beyond their duties to help a vulnerable
female victim.
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(PC Ellis – Cutting wood to board the window) |
Processing a prisoner was my next experience. Police Custody is an extremely busy environment, with prisoners from all walks of life. Booking in a prisoner is a fairly timely process. First of all the arresting officer has to divulge the grounds for the arrest to the Custody Sergeant, who will then decide whether or not the arrest is lawful and based on their decision order the detention of the prisoner, or simply order their release. This process is where good policing meets the CPS (Crown Prosecution Service), but I will park that for now and expand on this point in my second blog. After two hours in police custody and the successful detention of our abusive burglar we were back out on the streets of Kingston, in the patrol car.
(PC Ellis and myself – On duty in the ‘Area’car)
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Processing a prisoner was my next experience. Police Custody is an extremely busy environment, with prisoners from all walks of life. Booking in a prisoner is a fairly timely process. First of all the arresting officer has to divulge the grounds for the arrest to the Custody Sergeant, who will then decide whether or not the arrest is lawful and based on their decision order the detention of the prisoner, or simply order their release. This process is where good policing meets the CPS (Crown Prosecution Service), but I will park that for now and expand on this point in my second blog. After two hours in police custody and the successful detention of our abusive burglar we were back out on the streets of Kingston, in the patrol car.
Lunch, although a minor part of some people’s day is a large
part of my day. So far we had been on the go since 6AM and I was starving. When
on call you simply cannot pick or choose a good time for food, or any sort of
refreshments for that matter; you cannot plan. We had already left behind half
of our breakfast earlier in the day to attend the burglary, so I was hoping and
praying for a window of opportunity to grab a sandwich on the go. Needless to
say, that did not happen. Lunch was interrupted by the calls of a fellow
officer shouting for help down his radio. A police officer in trouble - I could
immediately see the anxiety in the eyes of the officers I was with, not to
mention hear the panic of the officer in trouble. We were one of only two cars
carrying Tasers that shift so it was of utmost importance that we got there as
quickly as we could. A Taser is a weapon that can end any confrontation,
however it is not carried by all Metropolitan Police officers and the officers
in distress were not carrying them. That journey on blues and sirens was a blur
if I am honest. I could sense the gravity of the situation based solely on the officer’s
cries over the radio and if I could sense his distress, so could the officers I
was with. Fortunately, we were called off the call prior to arrival as the
other Taser car had arrived before us and the situation had been brought under
control. The officers in distress had spotted and approached a ‘wanted’ suspect
who had turned violent. Outnumbered and facing an armed suspect, the officers
called for backup. The ‘wanted’ suspect was promptly arrested and the officers
escaped injury. This was my first experience of the true dangers that police
officers face on a daily basis. I appreciate it is tough for you to picture
unless you see it for your own eyes, but for me to hear the officers in
distress and to see the apprehension on the eyes of the officers I was with, is
a feeling that I will remember forever.
My second shift with Kingston’s Emergency Response Team A
was a ‘late’ shift. The ‘late’ shift follows on from the ‘early’ and starts at
2PM. I arrived at Kingston Police station at 1:30PM and promptly followed the
same protocol as I did with the ‘early’ shift. For this shift I was shadowing
PC Ellis and PC Jones in the ‘Area’ car. This is a car that is fitted with an
ANPR (Automatic number plate recognition) system and unsurprisingly has ANPR
Interceptor clearly marked on the car. The ANPR gives the officers an added
responsibility. The cameras on the car clearly pick up any motorists committing
motoring offences such as driving without insurance or tax. The system is also
linked to any new or past intelligence, meaning that any motorists or any cars
which have links to known crimes are immediately recognised. For example, our
first stop of the day was a male RSO (Registered Sex Offender). The ANPR detected
his number plate and he was pulled over in order for the officers to check he
was not breaking any of his release conditions. As
it stood, he was not breaking any of his release conditions and he was
immediately sent on his way. Based on that example, it was patently clear that
officers do not leave a stone unturned when it comes to tracking suspects known
to the police. The ANPR system provides a large database of information and
intelligence, allowing the officers to be very proactive and intuitive.
The first ‘I grade’ call (Emergency call) to come through on
the radio soon followed. An informant had called 999, reporting screams coming
from a residential address. The informant also allegedly heard a female
shouting ‘Get your hands off my throat’. On blues and en route, it was clear
this was a potentially very serious domestic incident. We arrived within
minutes and immediately faced the challenge of trying to locate the premises concerned,
which was within a large block of flats. I can tell you now, that it is not as
easy as it sounds and with time ticking, every second counts. Once we had
located the address, the two parties had separated voluntarily and both sides
were clearly reluctant to speak to the police. It was obvious to me that PC
Ellis and PC Jones were sensing, not all was right, but without any evidence of
a crime being committed and neither party wishing to make a complaint, it was a
tough situation for them to manage. They clearly did not want to leave a
vulnerable female alone, especially once the intelligence came in that this was
not the first call to this address for domestic violence. The time the officers
took with the female alone and their personable approach made the difference;
no charges were brought but the male agreed to leave the property and the relief
was there to see. He had no keys to get back in and the female could rest
assured, for the evening at least. It was fitting to see her emotion once the
male had left. Had PC Ellis and PC Jones not persevered with their diligent and
caring approach; I feel without doubt, we would have been back at that address
before the night was out.
Having experienced my first domestic violence call, I was
unwittingly about to experience my first high-speed police chase. Whilst en
route back to the police station, the officers spotted a car overtaking another
car in a 30 mph zone. Obviously keen to have a chat with the driver we pulled
up behind the car in question and signalled for it to pull over, however the
suspect failed to stop and sped off at high speed. Having retired as a racing
driver through injury, I should be used to high speeds and calculated risk, but
that was me behind the wheel. As a passenger, it is a very different sensation
and in the back of a police car, it is an even more alien sensation. I think it
is fair to say I would have got out if I could have, purely to save my nervous
system! The sensation of adrenalin was colossal and yet PC Ellis and PC Jones were
again so calm, and firmly engulfed in their process. For PC Ellis in the
passenger seat there was a lot to do regarding protocol, especially as India 99
(Metropolitan Police helicopter) was joining the chase; police stingers (tyre
deflation devices) had also been authorised. The radio traffic was
overwhelming, on top of the siren noise and the impact of hitting speed bumps
at high speed. I honestly did not know where to look, or what to hold onto in
those fraught few minutes. Suddenly the suspect disappeared. The disappointment
of the officers I was with was evident immediately, purely from their reaction.
The suspect’s driving had been so reckless that they really wanted that arrest.
They were not about to give up either. India 99 arrived moments later, but even
with their help, the suspect had vanished. Still, PC Ellis and PC Jones were
not going to be beaten. Their intensity and willpower to bring this suspect to
justice was powerful to see firsthand; believe me, they were NOT going home
until they had apprehended this dangerous driver. I am pleased to reveal that after
a brief ‘stakeout’ the suspect was arrested by us, outside a residential
property in another MPS borough, a mere four hours after he had gone to ground.
PC Ellis and PC Jones’ perseverance and hunger to make this arrest for the protection
and safety of fellow road users was not lost on me in the backseat.
The first two of my four shifts with Team A has really
opened up my eyes to the great work our police officers deliver on a daily
basis. The officers I met were all incredibly selfless and very personable
human beings. Husbands, wives, sons and daughters that all go to work on our
streets to keep us safe. The skill sets, bravery and patience required to deal
with the wide array of situations presented to them has really stuck with me. I
have nothing but respect; I am not sure I could do what they do.
The final two shifts with Kingston’s Emergency Response Team
A will be covered in my next blog. If you have enjoyed this article I think you
will really like what you read in the next one, especially as it features a
busy ‘night’ shift, an attempted murder and a knife point robbery.
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