Commander Crackpot
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The SUN 20th Feb 2002
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By MIKE SULLIVAN
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Sun Crime Editor <\/b><\/p>\n
A POLICE chief was branded Britain\u2019s oddest cop last night after saying he finds anarchy \u201cappealing\u201d. <\/p>\n
Bobbies were enraged by Commander Brian Paddick\u2019s amazing remark, one of 25 outbursts he made on a website covering protests against capitalism. <\/p>\n
A former Flying Squad boss said Paddick \u2014 head of the Met in Brixton, South London \u2014 was \u201cthe strangest police officer I have come across\u201d. <\/p>\n
The police chief has admitted most of his colleagues think he is a crackpot. <\/p>\n
In one of his bizarre outpourings on the internet, he said: \u201cMost people in the police think I am beyond redemption \u2014 \u2018let\u2019s get the guys in the white coats to take him away\u2019.\u201d <\/p>\n
And last night rank-and-file bobbies were furious after the 43-year-old commander declared: “The concept of anarchism has always appealed to me. The idea of the innate goodness of the individual that is corrupted by society or the system. <\/p>\n
“It is a theoretical argument but I am not sure everyone would behave well if there were no laws and no system.” <\/p>\n
Paddick, architect of the police\u2019s softly-softly approach to cannabis smokers, revealed his forthright view on the radical website urban75.com. <\/p>\n
It is well known for discussions about drugs and direct action protests against capitalism. <\/p>\n
The liberal police chief, Britain\u2019s most senior openly gay officer, has made 25 contributions to the site so far this year. <\/p>\n
Paddick, head of the Metropolitan Police force in the borough of Lambeth, South London, has also: <\/p>\n
LANDED in trouble with bosses after saying he was not interested in chasing people who use small amounts of cocaine and ecstasy. <\/p>\n
DECLARED that he does not give a \u201choot\u201d about his promotion prospects, and CONFESSED he is \u201ceither brave or stupid\u201d. <\/p>\n
In another posting on the website, he said: \u201cDo not treat all police officers as lapdogs of a corrupt capitalist system. Dogs sometimes turn on their owners.\u201d <\/p>\n
The outspoken cop \u2014 whose patch includes Brixton, one of Britain\u2019s toughest areas \u2014 used the monicker Brian: The Commander. <\/p>\n
His presence on the site initially caused disbelief among other contributors using names like Panda Killer and Slowdog. <\/p>\n
Paddick says he is trying to broaden his understanding by exchanging views with people who have differing views on policing. But his outburst on anarchy dismayed ordinary bobbies. <\/p>\n
Paddick … angered cops
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Glen Smyth, chairman of the Metropolitan Police Federation, said: \u201cCommander Paddick is a very senior officer in a high profile position \u2014 and he should be more careful about what he says. <\/p>\n
\u201cIt is quite bizarre that a police commander should say he finds anarchy attractive. <\/p>\n
\u201cIt is a kind of language you would expect from a hard Left Leninist. If one of our members said something similar in public there would be repercussions. <\/p>\n
\u201cI just wonder whether he can carry on doing his job like this.\u201d Ex-Flying Squad chief John O\u2019Connor accused Paddick of \u201cundermining law and order\u201d and bringing the force into disrepute. <\/p>\n
He said: \u201cBrian Paddick must be the oddest police officer I have ever come across. \u201cHe has to run one of the most difficult areas in the country. <\/p>\n
\u201cHow can politicians talk about zero tolerance and hardline policing while this man is making statements like this.\u201d <\/p>\n
Oxford graduate Paddick is currently on holiday in Australia with his male partner, a Gucci shop manager. <\/p>\n
He will be quizzed by top brass on his return but is unlikely to be sacked. <\/p>\n
A senior source said: \u201cIf the remarks he made on the net are his personal views no disciplinary action will be taken against him. <\/p>\n
\u201cHe enjoys the confidence of the Commissioner and is perceived to have done a good job in establishing confidence of his local community.\u201d <\/p>\n
But there is a feeling among many officers that Paddick has become an embarrassment who is living on borrowed time. <\/p>\n
Another source said: \u201cBrian is a brilliant policeman and nobody could question his commitment to the job. But he has a habit of putting his foot in it and his views are too radical for most officers to stomach.\u201d <\/p>\n
Paddick took over in Lambeth 13 months ago. He hit the headlines last July when he ordered his officers to just issue warnings to people caught with cannabis instead of arresting them. <\/p>\n
He took the decision without clearing it with boss Sir John Stevens. Home Secretary David Blunkett took note and demanded frequent updates on the experiment. <\/p>\n
In six months, the softly-softly approach is said to have saved 2,500 man hours and \u00a34million in court costs by not prosecuting 400 people caught with the drug. <\/p>\n
But arrests for possession of harder drugs rose by 19 per cent. <\/p>\n
As a result, the Government is downgrading cannabis from Class B to Class C from May. <\/p>\n
Critics, however, claim the policy has led to an influx of youngsters eager for easy dope. And last week the scheme was blasted by visiting ex-New York mayor Sir Rudy Giuliani, whose zero tolerance helped clean up his city. <\/p>\n
Paddick went a step too far in November by telling a committee of MPs he was not in favour of collaring those who use small amounts of cocaine and ecstasy. <\/p>\n
He was hauled up by top brass and Sir John Stevens dissociated the force from his remarks. <\/p>\n
Soft laws and crime is soaring <\/p>\n
Streets of fear … law-abiding locals are afraid to venture out at night in crime-plagued Brixton
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COMMANDER Paddick is testing his softly-softly cannabis policy in Brixton \u2014 dubbed London\u2019s drugs capital with a terrifying reputation for crime. <\/p>\n
Many locals are now too scared to go out at night. They say crime has soared since the policy brought in last July attracted more drug users to the area. <\/p>\n
The run-down part of Lambeth borough is plagued by mugging, burglary and car crime. <\/p>\n
Drug dealers openly sell heroin and crack cocaine on busy streets. Youths smoke pot knowing they are unlikely to face even a caution. <\/p>\n
Street robberies in Lambeth rose 46 per cent to 4,691 last year and a robbery was committed every 73 minutes in December. Drug-related crime rose by 25 per cent.<\/p>\n
http:\/\/www.thesun.co.uk\/article\/0,,2002081357,00.html<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Commander Crackpot The SUN 20th Feb 2002 By MIKE SULLIVAN Sun Crime Editor A POLICE chief was branded Britain\u2019s oddest cop last night after saying he finds anarchy \u201cappealing\u201d. Bobbies were enraged by Commander Brian Paddick\u2019s amazing remark, one of … Continue reading