Page 95 - Once a copper 10 03 2020

of the criminal activity of the young ones, clearly believing that discontent
with social conditions would not be fixed with violence and damage. This
echoed my views and I came away sympathising and appreciating the
disgust they felt at the shame the violence had wrought upon their otherwise
peaceful and harmonious community.

The rest of summer 1981 saw lots more arrests for my beloved crime, plenty of
dreaded process and overtime football matches when the season re-
opened at the end of August.

Early in October I attended my final local probationer course and passed
with a score of 80%. By now I was busily spending my spare hours studying for
my promotion exams, so any refresher course was adding to my grasp of the
Law. It was however to be another two years before I would pass my
Sergeants exam.

Hop Along Officer

One two ten shift in October ’81, rushing from one part of the building to
another, my bootlace came undone and wrapped awkwardly around my
left foot and I tripped, falling badly down a whole flight of stairs, twisting my
ankle horribly in the process. I was taken to Good Hope hospital with an
apple sized and coloured lump on the left side of my ankle that was causing
me excruciating pain. The examining doctor was of little comfort when he
said that it would have been better to have broken it, as this bad sprain
would take much longer to repair. Furious with my clumsiness, I was even
more disappointed at the prospect of being off work or assigned to light
duties.

Two weeks of boring sick leave and I was begging to come back to work. As
expected, I would be restricted to light duties as I was in a plaster cast and
walking with the aid of a stick. Four weeks working alongside ‘Best mate’
Sergeant Ted Reaney in the front office. Dealing with lost and found pets,
recording motorists document productions and offenders signing their daily
bail record cards at the front counter, booking in and charging prisoners in
the charge office. Not quite what I had in mind for the latter part of my
probation, but as I kept being reassured by the Sergeants, I’d won enough
brownie points, these weeks of light duties wouldn’t stop me passing through
my probation.

Evil, Sick and Twisted

In the middle of my light duties at Erdington, November 1981, news broke of a
horrendous and murderous attack on a young schoolboy on our
neighbouring sub-division of Sutton Coldfield. Apparently a 13-year-old lad
had been cycling in Sutton Park when he was abducted by an older man Page95
and a younger accomplice. The young victims naked body would be found