Western Daily Press (Saturday)
TV spotlight on ‘Line of Duty’ unit that polices West police
ANEW TV show will go behind the scenes showing how police in Avon and Somerset go about catching their colleagues who are accused of breaking the law.
A Channel 4 documentary series called To Catch a Copper will show how the police’s Professional Standards Department works.
The documentary crew followed investigators for four years to reveal an aspect of the police force never seen before. They followed cases from the start when alleged incidents are reported or complaints are made about officers, right through to the disciplinary hearings or criminal cases which have seen police officers sacked or jailed.
Avon and Somerset police began offering Channel 4 unprecedented access to the Professional Standards Department, the unit at the Portishead-based constabulary that “polices the police”, in 2020.
A spokesperson for the documentary said what they followed provides “a truly unique look at modern policing”.
“Over recent years there has been a growing crisis of trust in policing,” said a spokesperson for the broadcaster.
“Over four years, cameras followed cases from the point of view of investigators, accused officers, victims, legal professionals and community leaders. This creates a joined-up picture of the overall system designed to bring corrupt officers to justice as never seen before.”
“The resulting episodes examine cases that range from sexual predators within the police, to how they deal with the most vulnerable members of society, to institutional racism. Ultimately this shocking series asks, does a system where the police investigate themselves really work?” he said.
The first episode is being screened on January 29 on Channel 4, and will focus on officers accused of seriously mistreating or sexually exploiting vulnerable people they have to deal with.
“When two officers are called to a bridge at night to help a woman who has said she wants to take her own life, she is arrested, roughly handled and pepper-sprayed in the face, before being taken into custody,” claimed a Channel 4 spokesperson.
In another case, two officers mock a woman having a mental health crisis.
“Their behaviour is captured on bodyworn video camera which brings in to sharp focus the problem of compassion fatigue in modern policing. In a third case, a policeman is accused of having sex with a drunk member of the public in a police car whilst he was on duty.”
Avon and Somerset Police says the vast majority of police officers, specials and police staff who work for the force “demonstrate the high standards of professional behaviour expected”, but that where standards have been breached, officers will be held accountable for their actions.
The force says hearings are held in public to ensure the “disciplinary system is open and transparent”.