What The Hell Are The Police Doing

[Chippy_Tea]

You couldn't make it up, no further action taken yet the people who own the house have to deal with the fact a stranger has been in their house and worse used their bathroom.





BBC News -

A man who broke into a house and took a bath was disturbed when the homeowner returned to find him enjoying a "cup of Oxo" while having a soak.

Staffordshire Police said officers were called to a house on Mossfield Road, in the Longton area of Stoke-on-Trent, on Wednesday night.

When they arrived, a naked man fled the property and tried to escape.

Police arrested a 36-year-old man, of no fixed address, on suspicion of burglary and he was taken into custody.

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The homeowner, who did not want to be identified, said he thought he had seen "a ghost" when he found the man in his bath.

Jar of pickles

"He had a cup of Oxo in his hand. He'd made himself a cup of Oxo."

"He ate me crisps, had five rounds of corned beef and sauce, ate a jar of pickles, had two ice creams and a can of coke," he added.

"Nobody can believe what's happened because it's something what doesn't happen."

The force said the 36-year-old was released with no further action after an assessment where "his safeguarding needs were addressed".

Ch Insp Karen Stevenson said: "This was a highly unusual episode and not one we see every day.

"I'd like to reassure local residents that this was a completely isolated incident and there's no reason to be alarmed."

 

[Saisonator]

You have to actually break in for it to be a criminal offence, otherwise it's just trespass.
I know this from when I used to hunt rabbits with dogs and ferrets, you couldn't really get nicked for it unless you were carrying game.

 

[marshbrewer]

Think that's changed (very recently) to deal with squatting; trespass on a residential property is now a criminal rather than civil matter.

But your right about land - which is why them signs saying ''trespassers will be prosecuted' should say 'will be sued'

 

[Ajhutch]

I saw on the BBC website that the 78 year old man will face no further action.

 

[Cwrw666]

Of course he won't. When the cops are investigating an incident they arrest everyone so that they can question them, then they let them go without charge unless they deserve hanging onto.

I heard the dead guys family on the radio the other day saying how wonderful he was and didn't deserve what happened to him. Bunch of scumbags.

 

[marshbrewer]

I saw on the BBC website that the 78 year old man will face no further action.

Good. A rare occurrence of common sense from the CPS.

 

[GhostShip]

So, actually, despite the mass hysteria in the media, this all appears to have been handled very well by the Police.

 

[marshbrewer]

No, in a rare case of common sense, it appears that the CPS have decided not to prosecute.

The Police, as usual, have decided that arrest first, investigate later, should be their normal routine.

 

[Oneiroi]

For the most part I would give a homeowner the benefit of the doubt in these cases, but it 's to go through due process. Hopefully the guy will be treated well despite the arrest and it won't go any further unless it turns out that things aren't quite what they seem.

I don't think you have the right to shoot someone for being on your property, only if you have genuine reason to think, in the moment, that you or others are in physical danger. But it's hard to judge someone for their reactions in the heat of an intense situation that they didn't cause.

Edit: Grammar

 

[GhostShip]

No, in a rare case of common sense, it appears that the CPS have decided not to prosecute.

The Police, as usual, have decided that arrest first, investigate later, should be their normal routine.

Someone was stabbed and died. The Police had absolutely no option but to arrest. From where I sit, the whole thing has been handled very well - with the right outcome.

 

[marshbrewer]

Obviously, I'm biased as I believe the UK police have become politicised and therefore corrupt, but are the police not able to question people without arresting them first? (Genuine question)

 

[Clint]

Dunno but once agreeing to being under arrest (“do you UNDER stand me?) you have allowed them to start legal proceedings against you...the understand bit means to be subservient and to concede your rights...not as to whether you comprehend their words...

 

[GhostShip]

Obviously, I'm biased as I believe the UK police have become politicised and therefore corrupt, but are the police not able to question people without arresting them first? (Genuine question)

Yes, but when the first officers arrive at a scene to find two men present with one lying dead on the floor having been stabbed, they have no real option but to arrest the other man. They will have asked him what happened and he will almost certainly have told the truth - that he found an intruder in his home armed with a screwdriver. There was a struggle and the homeowner stabbed the intruder. What are the Police supposed to do then, say “Oh, that’s OK then, we’ll be off”?

They have no idea what’s happened and have to establish the facts. A man is lying on the floor in his own blood - they have to arrest the other man, almost certainly on the basis that he freely admitted to stabbing and killing the intruder.

I would be willing to bet good money that if the homeowner was interviewed now, he would feel he was very fairly and sympathetically dealt with under the laws of this country. This whole story has been pumped up by the likes of the Daily Mail and it’s completely unnecessary. Due process has taken place and everyone should be happy with the outcome.

 

[marshbrewer]

But you keep saying they 'had' to arrest him. Why? If he was being placid and cooperative why couldn't they take him in for questioning to establish the facts? Why did they HAVE to arrest him? I don't understand.

 

[GhostShip]

But you keep saying they 'had' to arrest him. Why? If he was being placid and cooperative why couldn't they take him in for questioning to establish the facts? Why did they HAVE to arrest him? I don't understand.

Because he almost certainly admitted to killing someone. For all the Police knew at that time, it could have been cold blooded murder.

Seriously, if the Police stopped arresting people where a killing had taken place, they would be absolutely hammered by politicians and the media. With an arrest, that person is in custody and can’t harm anyone else until the facts of the case are established. This would all have been explained to the homeowner and I suspect he knew fairly early on that the Police were on his side.

 

[marshbrewer]

But if he was placid and cooperative, then by taking him in you achieve all the things you point out, without arresting him. So, why did they HAVE to arrest him?

Just a quick request - can you stop putting words into my mouth, please, I have at no point suggested that the police should have done nothing, and said “Oh,that’s OK then, we’ll be off” or that 'the Police stopped arresting people where a killing had taken place'. I'm simply trying to ascertain if the was a legal reason that the police needed to arrest and detain him f he was being placid and cooperative.

 

[Ajhutch]

It is possible isn’t it that he refused to go in for questioning. We don’t know whether that is true or not but it’s a possibility. We don’t know what the second burglar provided to the police at the scene. There are lots of possibilities.

It doesn’t mean that either of you @jjsh or @GhostShip is right or wrong, but none of us knows the full facts and speculating or criticising institution on the basis of less than full facts is never going to be an exact science.

 

[marshbrewer]

Fair play. I'll shut me trap.

 

[Ajhutch]

Fair play. I'll shut me trap.

I hope you don’t think that’s what I meant, I was just trying to keep it friendly! All’s well that ends well and all that.

 

[Thumper]

So, actually, despite the mass hysteria in the media, this all appears to have been handled very well by the Police.

Shocker, that. It's almost like they were just doing their jobs or something.