What do Police Officers wish they had two of?

[Dis86]

I hadn't thought about that. What do you do if you need more than one pair? Surely that must happen sometimes. I doubt if politely asking the 2nd person to pretend they're handcuffed would work very well.

Tangential fact time...the literal meaning of "copper" (in this context) is "person who makes arrests".

My dad used to carry his actual set and a boatload made out of cable ties.

 

[Mcnumpty2323]

My dad used to carry his actual set and a boatload made out of cable ties.

Nowadays probably get sued for using cable ties on them as risk of cutting off circulation
Even if some of the little scrotes actually need circulation cut off
At the neck if possible

 

[Angilion]

Well you're always out in pairs so you always have an extra on hand so to speak but waiting for support just because there is a third or fourth person that need to be nicked is a pain. Essentially you call for support and plan ahead when possible but it's annoying when that isn't possible...**** happens.

Would having 2 each be practical? I don't know how inconvenient they are to carry. I would be surprised if they are so inconvenient to carry that routinely carrying 2 sets would be impractical, but I could be wrong.
Are they expensive enough and fragile enough for the cost of doubling the amount to be prohibitive? I'd be surprised if they were.

Also, I've seen coppers out on their own. Very rarely, though. Only twice, come to think of it. Once when I was breaking into a flat(*) and a copper came by to question me. Although maybe they'd been in a car with another copper who stayed in the car. My attention was on them at the time. "It's not what it looks like. Well it sort of is, but it isn't". Once when trouble kicked off in the street outside my workplace with a member of one group threatening to stab someone in another group to death. The first car arrived in a couple of minutes with just one copper in it, who went off after the group that had fled. The second car with a pair in arrived about 20s later and followed the first. The van with a bunch of armed police arrived a minute or two later.



* I was living there and had left my keys at work, so I was trying to get in without keys and without doing any damage. But of course they didn't know that in advance, so they investigated.

 

[Burnsy2023]

Well you're always out in pairs so you always have an extra on hand so to speak but waiting for support just because there is a third or fourth person that need to be nicked is a pain. Essentially you call for support and plan ahead when possible but it's annoying when that isn't possible...**** happens.

@Angilion

You're only always double crewed in the Met or if you're a specialist unit. I'm on my own most of the time, indeed all of the time due to COVID. For reference, I carry two pairs of cuffs on me.

 

[TheVoice]

@Angilion

You're only always double crewed in the Met or if you're a specialist unit.

Or in Scotland.

 

[HangTime]

I'm going to say shoes/boots, because it is the one item of clothing that can cause major issues if it breaks or gets lost, given that you are nearly always in contact with the ground via your shoes. You can get away with damaged/wet clothes but you are severely hampered if you have a shoe that's out of commission.

Maybe gloves would be another one, I guess the police frequently have to handle things they don't want in contact with their hands, whether that be because they don't want to leave fingerprints or risk of injury/infection from picking up used drugs paraphernalia, cleaning up sick etc.

 

[TimTom]

I'm going to say shoes/boots, because it is the one item of clothing that can cause major issues if it breaks or gets lost, given that you are nearly always in contact with the ground via your shoes. You can get away with damaged/wet clothes but you are severely hampered if you have a shoe that's out of commission.

Maybe gloves would be another one, I guess the police frequently have to handle things they don't want in contact with their hands, whether that be because they don't want to leave fingerprints or risk of injury/infection from picking up used drugs paraphernalia, cleaning up sick etc.

Gloves was the answer. But you’re right about shoes too. Somebody has already stated that a good quality pair of boots can pretty much ensure dry and undamaged feet, but bear in mind that back in the seventies and eighties, ordinary heavy duty shoes were often the order of the day for police officers. Trust me, that resulted in very wet shoes and socks more times than I care to remember!

I recall one day seeing a young copper arriving in trendy black shoes with a little silver buckle! There were several shakes of the head as he set out for his shift. I suspect the first time he got involved in anything slightly physical, his smart shoes may not have survived a scuffle!! lol