A police chief has banned officers from entering an unlit children’s play area at night – because it is too DARK.
Inspector Andy Sullivan from Cambridgeshire police has declared the £1million Waterlees play park a no-go area after 8pm.
The unfinished park in Wisbech, Cambs., has no lighting and has been hit by vandalism in recent months.
But officers will no longer be able to enter the park at night unless a crime is already being committed.
Inspector Andy Sullivan claimed it was not safe to send officers to the park – but will review the policy ”when it gets lighter” in the spring.
He said: ”I am not going to put my staff – police officers or PCSOs – into an area where they can’t see what is going on.
”If kids play in the park at night we will not go in. It is not our job to get kids out of the park.
”If it was any other building site, would people be happy if police tried to get people out?
”If there is a crime being committed then obviously we will go in. But it is not our job to clear a private park – we are not security staff.”
He added: ”When its gets lighter I will review things.”
Wisbech Town Councillors were shocked by the announcement made at a meeting on Monday evening.
Councillor Richard Fulcher said: ”I and many other councillors were disgusted with his comments.
”What on earth sort of society have we got where police officers refuse to go anywhere after 8pm?
”What inspector Sullivan has done is to declare this part of Wisbech a ‘no go’ area because of poor lighting.”
Councillor David Patrick said: ”I think councillors were gobsmacked by his remarks.
”He said police officers wouldn’t go into the park because it was dark. Don’t they carry torches?”
The playground, funded by the government’s Play Pathfinder scheme, has already attracted controversy.
Two 65ft barges were attacked just days after they were installed and a child was injured in the unfinished park last summer.
Concerned residents claimed at a meeting in October that drunken youths had ”taken over” the park and were tormenting local people.
Security was stepped up during the park’s development and a guard was posted on site when contractors went home.
Last summer, MP Stephen Barclay questioned the design – which includes a fire pit – and the huge cost of the scheme.
He said: ”It is important that residents get quick answers to clarify which person has made the decision to sign off this design, why it is costing so much, and what can be done to sort out problems already identified.”
County councillors said that flood lighting had not been put up at the request of residents and that planners had refused permission for a higher fence to guard the park.
we live near this area and in general are lives our a living hell. The police refuse to take any action against any of the families involved and one of the young artists mentioned at the playgorund is involved in making our livesd a living hell. We have been physically assaulted and badley injured and on one occassion held hostage in our own home by these police officers who are nothing but bullies for four hours while 26 people stood outside and in our garden threatening to murder us in front of the police officers, who refused totaek any action against these people. I spent weeks trying to report this assualt and was refused to allow this to be reported. I have been grabbed by officers and now charged with assualting the very people that assualted both me and my Mother who has serious injuries, and I did nto assualt anyone. No action has been taken against these people and I have complained to the IPPC after making about 50 complaints directly to the Police Department.
I have been treated so badley that I took an overdose, the house was searched under section 18. I cannot go back as I am not supposed to go near one of the attackers who constantly walks around our house and no restrictions have been placed on her or their family. We were attacked by Carol Munday, Charlotte Munday and Charlotte Mundays Mother.
We have been told by the Police to put my Father in a care home, do not look out of our windows, and to mind our own buisiness.
The Police stopped Charlotte Munday outside of our house because she was in breach of her curfew and other familys have complained about her behaviour. The Police have admitted that they knew that whoevers house they stopped her outside of that they would be blamed by the family for contacting the police which we did not. The family have told the Police that they blame us for the fact that Charlotte was stopped outside of our house. Charlotte is not on any order because of what she has doen to our family but because of what she is doing to other people. Charlotte Munday apart formt he criminal damage, ongoign threats and constant abuse and harrassement which has turned into a hate campaign has been on communtiy orders, curfews adn asbos.
This family have openly boasted in front of the police that they are enticing others familys to become involved and continuously makd false allegations against our family and we have been placed in a situation wherby we have to prove that these are not true and we have doen this with every allegation so far.
The Police have passed onto this family our personnal information by telling them, that my Father has mixed dementia and our personnal buisiness and when we challanged the Police on this their response was prove it.
Charlotte Munday is continously walking around our house yelling that she has a knife and is going to kill somoen, that she has brocken a girls nose and another girls arm and that she is also harrassing someone else not far from us. I have reported this to the Police on many occassions and I am told that these people are allowed to walk in a public place and nothing can be done to stop them.
I had tried and tried to report the assualt and in the end I sat in March Police station from 9.45am to about 6.15pm asking to be givien an appointment to see a Police Officer to anable me to reort the assault. I was eventaully told that an Officer was on his way to see me. When they arrived I was told that I was being arrested and told to get in there. It is claimed that I walked up to Carol Munday and pushed her when she fell backwards and sprained her wrist. I was ont he phone to the Cambridgeshire Police Department for the thrid time that evening begging them to come out but they would not and I only went around the corner because the service operator wanted me to tell her what was happening. Both Mys elf and My mother were attacked by three people and My Mothers injuries are serious. Throughout the attack I maanged to hold onto the phone and this was recorded by the service centre but the Police are saying this evidence does not support the fact that we were attacked. We received much verbal,physical abuse and threats.
The Police had their fun and treated me very badley leaving me unable to return to work or my home at 10.30pm. No action has yet beign taken against this family and I am on bail charged with ABH now lowered from GBH. The have locked the investigation down so that no one can get any access to any infomrtaion not even my Solicitor and I am bailed to appear at March Police Sation on 17th February at 12md. I asked whent he Police wer going to take soem action against this family and was told that they would not speak to me in the custody suite but inseated woudl speak top me outside the bakc of the Police Sation at 10.30pm at night, I refused to speak to them under these conditions.
I still have not been told why it was neccessary to arrest me and the IPCC say they cannot investigate the complaint until the investigation is complete.
At the tiejm of the attack I only went outside because hte service centre operator wanted to know what was happening and I was talking to them on the phone whilst I was beign attacked. The Police said that this is not enough proof of the fact that I was attacked or that my Mothers injuries are due to an attack but we have been told by the medical profession that my Mothers injuries are consistant with a serious attack. I was also injured. The Police have accused me of making up the attack. I have a manual desterity injury and the Police kept repeating the exercies very painful of taking my fingerprints on this hand. They played a little game, shall we charge her with GBH, NO abh, NO gbh and so on. I was held in the cells until about 10.30pm. I have been placed on bail to reappear at Marvh Police Sation on the 17th February at 12md. I was formally charged with ABH and my bail condition prevents me from going anywhere near arol Munday who conastantly approaches me, my family and our home. I was told that if she alleges that I have gone near her I will be in brach of my bail conditions and that hse can go near me but I am not to go near her. I asked what I am supposed to do if I am getting out of my car and she is there? I said that I woudl not be able to go home or go to work and I was told that they did not see why I couldnt.
They bagged my belongings up and even looked through my tampons. Knowing that I would have difficulty opening these bags in the dark, rain and at 10.30pm at night now in pain because I had nto received my medication, they tied really tight knotd in the bags which upset me so much becauese I could not even get my cars keys. Eventually I broke the bag open and everythign fell in the mud and I was beign watched by these officers who found this amusing and they alsofollowed me most of the way home.
When I asked about what action was going to be taken against the family who assualted us I was told that they would not discuss it in the Police Station or Custody Suite that I woudl have to speak to the Officers out the back o fthe station in the dark at 10.30pm at night, I refused to do this.
Whne I told them that I coudl not return home or to work, I was told that Iw as being over melodramtic. I tried to explain to them that I never go near these people and that they are just leaving me open to further false allegations but they refused to hear this and siad that they did not understand why I woudl not be able to return to work, I was making this up.
I told them that under the circumstance that I just could not cope any more and that I woudl take an overdoes several times but they just thought this was funny and I was being rather over melodramatic.
This family have told the Police that there is nothign wrong with my hand and the Police choose to believe this as well even thoguth the injury is clearly diagnosed and doucmented. They do not beleive that I should be driving, living or working either even thought I drive legally and pay to have my car adapted myself. The DVLA are aware and have acrried out their own investigationsd into my fitness to drive. This disability was caused previously by a driver who caused a car accident, previous car accidents, and further car accidents but no retrictions are placed on his right/fitness to drive even though I have never causes an accident.
The Police searched the house,and went through all of my belongings and other rooms in the house. They searched through my clothes, tampons, savings, bank statements, car insurance documentation,work infomration and seized my prescrription and my personal mobile as well as my work mobile. We do nto not know what other items they seized.
The Police came to the Hospital wanting to see me but I refused to see them. They told the staff that they now that Old man woudl have to go into a home which was good as I was no longer there to care for my parents and that I had crashed my car. They were trying to sop me from being realeased from Hospital saying that I was a danger to others. They refused to relaease my mobile phones.
The Police have locked the investigation down so that no one can receive any information. The IPCC cannot investigate what happened until the investigation has been completed which could be months. I still do not know why I was arrested. The Police have nto changed my bail conditions knowing that I cannot go home under the cirmcumstances which has left my parents on thier own, my Mother with serious injuries and a sever fracture and my Father with demntia whislt no action has been taken against this family two doors down or any of ther families they have ionvolved.
Since I injured my wrist which ias a serious and painful injuriy int he last fourteen years I spend all of my time prtecting the in jury so that it is not made worse, the only people to have looked at my wrist or touch it are Doctors, the Police, Carlotte Munday and Carol Munday when they attacked me.
These Officers may be too frightened to taklce the criminals or enter the playground but they are very happy to wrongly accuse innocent people of not doign anythigna nd happy to bully and riducule disabeld and vulnerable people.
physicaL abuse and threats and if the police responeded to the three phone calls this would not have happened.
The Police played a little game we will charge for for GBH not ABH not GBH etc:
I have a manual dexterity injury and my finger rpints on this hand were painfully taken over and over again. All my belongings were bagged up and tied in bags with tight knots so I could no even get my car keys out and wehen I did manage to burst one of the bags eveythign just fell in the mud in the adrk at 10.30pm.
I have been accused of making the assualt up! which is not true as I was also injured.
physicaL abuse and physical abuse, and threats. If the Police has responeded on the first phone call or the second phone call or the third phone call this woudl not have happened.
physical abuse and I was not requesting that the Police come out for no reason forthe third time that evening. I hold the Police responsible for this because if
they had come out when I called them on the first occassion this would not have happened.