First Panel Flashcards
Who are the three officers
Daniel Wong: Constable (Coquitlam RCMP)
Megan Lui: Constable (VPD)
Sam Zacharias: Constable (Port Moody Police Department)
How Would You Describe the Police using one word and why?
Daniel Wong: Dynamic - Job is Always Changing (Wide Variety)
Megan Lui: Bridge or connector - Bridge between the people they arrest to mental hospital, counsel, etc.
Sam Zacharias: Stopgap - Last line of defence, deal with everything in society, band aid, deal with problems on a short term basis
At what point in your life did you decide you wanted to become a police officer, was there a particular event or person that inspired that interest?
Daniel Wong: Always had an interest in policing even at a young age. Coach in highschool that was a VPD member, was a positive role model to him.
Megan Lui: Working with the VPD makes her happy. Went to an info session and thought she could do this for the rest of my life, much more fulfilling than her last occupation.
Sam Zacharia: Always had an interest for police, had an intro to policing class in high school
How did your family and friends react to you becoming a police officer
Daniel Wong: Family was a little bit hesitant because of the stereotypes of policing (going to be an alcoholic, dangerous etc.). His friends were very different, so he started to surround himself with those that had a positive impact on him.
Megan Lui: Her family was not very supportive, surprised, thought it was an unknown ground for them. Now her parents are very proud.
Sam Zacharia: Did not love the idea of policing, wanted him to take the lawyer route. They believed it was a dangerous job. Alumni at SFU. Calls him and his friends birds of a feather in a flock - shows self-selection. Group of people with similar interests and attitudes.
What excites you most about patrol work and are there any elements of patrol work that you find particularly satisfying or rewarding?
Daniel Wong: Driving fast in a car is very exciting. Most satisfying thing is catching bad guys and gaining the trust of the public, help restore publics faith
Megan Lui: Driving fast in a car, satisfaction of solving a B&E after the owners did not think she was going to catch the offender. Building trust in the community
Sam Zacharia: People are interested in what they do regardless of whether or not they like police, going really fast during a call for help is what he finds exciting. Certain types of files that were really rewarding (getting to work with a victim so closely, she knew she was important and being cared for) - She was being harassed by an individual at work
What is The Most Challenging Part About Patrol Work, and Have Your Perceptions of These Challenges Changed Over The Course of Your Career?
Daniel Wong: One of the most challenging parts is that he is the face of the criminal justice system (CJS) and everything that is out of his hands, he has no say in changing it.
Megan Lui: It is very frustrating when she is arresting the breaking and entering suspect, she recognizes him because he has been caught and released so many times. The frustrating part is that she has no say in what happens to the criminal after she is doing her best to apprehend them - just has to live with it.
Sam Zacharia: There are many frustrating parts in their role as police, still loves his job. The polices’ jobs have become much more legalistic. They are social workers, first responders, lawyers. Knowledge of the law needs to be very high as it should be, but frustrating how he has to do a lot of paperwork, his time could be used to do better things. Just one example of things he has to spend a lot of time on.
What is the most common or frequent call for service that you attend as a patrol officer in your community?
Daniel Wong: Most common call is to check well being, anything from someone sleeping on the sidewalk to mental health teen calling to do a mental health assessment
Megan Lui: Most common is to check well being, mental health problems and homeless people
Sam Zacharia: Most common call is to assist the general public. Sometimes it can be a check for well being can be anything from pushing a broken down car to bullying at a school or someone refusing to leave a fast food store. None of them are a criminal offence
What percentage of calls for service do you find issues that are not directly related to crime?
Daniel Wong: 20-25 percent are criminal offenses or related to crime and the other 75 are other issues
Megan Lui: 80% are to to do with mental health and the other 2 are related to criminal offences
Sam Zacharia: Rough Estimate: 75% calls for service do not involve criminal offences. Many different statutes they deal with, criminal code offences are rare
What is The Biggest misconception that the public has about patrol work?
Daniel Wong: Most common misconception is that police work is black and white. Lots of shades of gray that people don’t see. We think of policing is right and wrong but there is a lot of decision making involved
Megan Lui: During protesting people yell at her due to preconceptions they have about police from the news, or previous interactions.
Sam Zacharia: The use of force. They don’t use force; it is usually the last option, the first line of defence is their presence and then some of the physical tactics such as the tools in their belt. Does not happen often. IMIM Model
