Updated 7 August 2009 – see footnote*
On Friday 7th August, representatives of Lancashire Police Force will be meeting the conservation worker – wrongly cautioned under s59 of the Police Reform Act 2002 – at his solicitor’s office.
Will they, I wonder, have the integrity to own up that the charge was nothing more than an attempt to intimidate and harass somebody who was only trying to see that the law is upheld with regards to protecting our wildlife? Or will they ‘close ranks’ as is so often the case?
Why would they want to intimidate somebody trying to ensure peregrines enjoy their legal protection? I think you’ll find the answer to that question as you read the reports on the rest of this site.
A fact for you: the raptor conservationists behind this site enjoy better help, cooperation and lines of communication with the Scottish police than the Lancashire police. Just what is the problem with our local ‘boys in blue’?
In the meantime, who’s to say the police aren’t using this trumped-up charge to discredit the raptor worker concerned? Or much worst, bending the regulations to pursue a personal vendetta in a bid to silence the raptor worker from speaking out about wide-scale raptor persecution throughout the Forest of Bowland’s shooting estates which, for what ever reason, the police have declined to investigate!! Why?
* Footnote: 7th August 2009. At the offices of the raptor worker’s solicitor today, following a 2 hour meeting attended by two officers from Lancashire Constabulary, the police have admitted the S59 warning notice issued in April to the raptor worker was wrong and inappropriate. The police also fully apologised for what had taken place, this was accepted by the raptor worker and he thanked the police for their assistance in this matter. At this stage it would be inappropriate to make any further comments. Our colleague wishes to thank you all for your support and good wishes.
Good luck to the conservation worker on friday, lets hope he can make them see sense.
Thank goodneess commonsense finally begins to shine through! Given this is one element of their strategy which has proved to be incorrect, the revision of others might follow if it causes some “reflection” within the Lancashire Police? It would be nice to think so!
A fantastic result, lets hope this is just the beginning of lancashire police admitting there mistakes.
This is brilliant news. The hard working volunteer recieving an apology for actions carried out by wayward individuals in the police force who are a law unto them self. At last common sense and justice prevails. It’s gone a short way to restore a lot of lost faith in the police for me.
This is a fantastic website full of detailed and factual information.
I will be much happier to learn however, that lancashire constabularly are listening and adhereing to the advice of expert raptor workers like the poor individual targetted in this article. He has rightly recieved his apology. NOW the shocking figures of raptor crime and persecution needs to be addressed. For just how long can the beaurocratic idiots maintain that everything is ‘hunky dorey’ in Bowland and indeed the rest of the country where grouse and game moors occur? Grouse and game moors and more specifically their owners/workers are responsible for the extreme acts of persecution resulting in poor fledgling rates year up on year. When these issues are addressed and are actively being tackled and rectified then and only then will my faith be restored totally in the police.