Towards midnight on Wednesday 11th June, 1845, a policeman, James Beer, was on duty in Exeter. He found two men fighting in Coombe Street, and he took them in charge. One of these was a soldier; both the combatants were roaring drunk. James Beer sent another policeman off with the civilian and he followed with the other, the soldier. They were on their way to the police station house. Half way along South Street the soldier lay down on the ground, kicked out violently with his spurs and refused to go any further. A crowd of fifty or sixty gathered and instead of aiding the police it interfered with them. The police were called murdering rogues and blackguard rascals by the people.
The following Saturday two of the crowd, Thomas Raddon and William Soper, were brought before the Justices at the Exeter Guildhall charged with interfering with and not rendering that assistance which all persons are bound to do, on being called on for that purpose by the police. The defence claimed that the watch (police) conducted themselves improperly and used more violence towards, and treated their prisoner in a way they were not justified in doing. Raddon and Soper, however, were found guilty and fined.
It seems that, in Exeter in 1845, it was considered a chargeable offence for a citizen not to have helped the police in the execution of their duties. Not such a bad idea perhaps?!
Source: The Exeter Flying Post, 19th June, 1845
No comments:
Post a Comment