Essex Police marine unit shuts and police dogs reduced

Was it anything to do with the Olympics? Build up the force for that period and now no longer required? What were the resources ten years ago? just a thought.
 
To be honest, what did the marine unit actually do? How many crimes did they solve? They're not there to rescue people, almost all marine crime is theft from boats and storage ashore, the few crimes that take place on the water never have a police launch nearby. It's our 750k they're saving; I'd rather pay a bit less tax.
 
Lazy Kipper said:
To be honest, what did the marine unit actually do? How many crimes did they solve? They're not there to rescue people, almost all marine crime is theft from boats and storage ashore, the few crimes that take place on the water never have a police launch nearby. It's our 750k they're saving; I'd rather pay a bit less tax.
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Exactly. Whenever I've visited Burnham Yacht Harbour, the police craft have just been parked there, not doing anything.
 
Lazy Kipper said:
To be honest, what did the marine unit actually do? How many crimes did they solve? They're not there to rescue people, almost all marine crime is theft from boats and storage ashore, the few crimes that take place on the water never have a police launch nearby. It's our 750k they're saving; I'd rather pay a bit less tax.
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They actually spent a great deal of their time doing underwater searches - for bodies, murder weapons etc - most of it if not all inland. They had no idea where to deploy on the water because so few crimes were reported. Given the number of PCs that have had to be lost by Essex Police, the marine unit could not be sustained. Arguably it should have gone on cost effectiveness grounds ages ago.
 
Tiller Girl said:
They actually spent a great deal of their time doing underwater searches - for bodies, murder weapons etc - most of it if not all inland. They had no idea where to deploy on the water because so few crimes were reported. Given the number of PCs that have had to be lost by Essex Police, the marine unit could not be sustained. Arguably it should have gone on cost effectiveness grounds ages ago.
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Pretty much what Cambridgeshire Police dive team used to do, before cost cutting meant they disbanded. Pretty daft I thought at the time as Cambridgeshire is full of drainage channels and people often end up in them, or crash cars into them
 
sailorman said:
He is also modernising the force. Specialist domestic abuse officers are to be equipped with body-worn video cameras, while mobile technology will be used to speed up crime investigations by eliminating the need for officers tor return to police stations to access information.
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All police officers should wear video cameras whenever they are out of the station; I cannot understand why this has not already been implemented, the elimination of 'he said, she said' that this single act would bring about is the next step forward in improving policing and raising public confidence in law guardians.
 
I have seen them in action twice...
Both fatal events on the Crouch/Roach. Someone drowned in accidents. They went screaming up the river at full power. However, I am not sure what they could actually achieve when they arrived at the scene?
 
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