On crime and the news that retail crime is now so bad we experience almost 300 incidents a day.

Quite rightly when we talk about crime, our focus should be on the victims mainly.

But spare a thought for the police as well, because they are clearly so frustrated by what’s happening.

I spoke to an officer today, completely unrelated to the crime stats.

He just wanted to get it off his chest how frustrated he is by Andrew Coster’s national headquarters stopping the front line officers from doing their jobs.

I'm not going to say where this officer works, so he doesn’t get in trouble, but he told me today that in the area he patrols there are a couple of what he calls scroties. Guys who keep getting in trouble, getting bail and then doing it again.

But this officer is getting really frustrated at Andrew Coster’s directive that they’re not allowed to chase these guys.

So this is what really made this officer upset. Recently, these crims were in a car, officer wanted to chase so they drove directly at him, because they know that means the chase will get called off under the rules.

And that’s what happened. Called off, officer then watched the crims drive at three other cars, still not allowed to chase, watched them drive at a truck- still not allowed to chase.

Couple of nights later, they’re out again. The police see them and spike the car. That means it was only a matter of time before the car ran out of puff and had to stop.

But then the police officers were told to stop the chase. They knew those guys would probably steal a car to get away, because they’d done that before.

Sure enough, one minute later- they pulled a woman from her car and in their car they left behind a firearm and a homemade sword. 

These guys are really dangerous, but the police aren’t allowed to chase them.

This officer wants three things: 

• To be allowed to chase bad guys.
• For judges to stop giving these bad guys bail and letting them out into the community to keep victimising people.
• And tougher sentences; if you run from police he reckons mandatory six months in the slammer.

Every police officer I’ve spoken to will tell you you’re seeing more crime because they aren’t allowed to chase criminals and because the courts aren’t punishing them hard enough.

So unfortunately, we probably have to get used to those crime numbers. Because unless Coster and the courts harden up, this is life in NZ.

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