VIP Newsletter VIP Newsletter October 2017 | Page 5

praises
off-duty special
Judge praises off-duty
special for helping
domestic violence
victim
A special constable has been
commended by a District
Judge for intervening in a
domestic violence incident
while off-duty.
In May this year SC Alex
Paradise, of Erewash LPU,
was at his home address in
Ripley. He became aware
that an argument was taking
place on the street outside
his house. Looking out of his
window, he witnessed a man
assaulting his partner on the
street.
Coming out onto the main
road, he saw that the victim
was bleeding, had heavy
swelling to the right side of
her face and was unsteady
on her feet. Alex provided
reassurance to the victim
who confirmed that the man
had assaulted her. Two other
members of the public came
to assist and after being
directed to call the police by
Alex, stopped with the victim.
Alex detained the offender at
the scene until the arrival of
uniformed officers.
On the June 14, the offender
pleaded guilty to assault at a
specialist Domestic Violence
Court. District Judge Davison
commended Alex and the
two members of the public for
intervening in the incident.
Alex said:
“
It’s great to receive praise
from the District Judge, but
in truth I’m most happy about
the positive action taken by
the court in sentencing this
offender.
It is appalling that someone
would think it is acceptable
to assault their partner. That
they would have the audacity
to do so on the main road
of a busy town is beyond
comprehension. It says a lot
about the people of Ripley
that three of us chose to
intervene and I hope that this
sends out a clear message
that we won’t tolerate this
behaviour in our town.
I was only attested earlier
this year, but the training and
experience I have gained from
being a special constable
was hugely beneficial in that
incident. I’d like to thank
our training school staff,
and particularly PC Sally
Whitehouse who delivered the
input on domestic violence.
The understanding I gained
in initial training ultimately
helped secure this result at
court and protect a vulnerable
and intimidated victim.
I’d recommend joining the
specials to anyone who
wants to contribute to making
your community safer. The
skills you gain in this role
benefit the public, but they
also develop you as a person
and have a positive impact in
all areas of your life.
”
provide emergency shelter in the event of a disaster in the
county.
Message of thanks
Eight PSVs supported the exercise, playing the roles of
displaced residents needing emergency shelter and care.
Derbyshire County Council has thanked a team of police
support volunteers for their help during an emergency
planning exercise. Paula McDonald, Senior Emergency Planning Officer for
DCC said: “I would like to express my sincere thanks to
the police volunteers who attended the above exercise.
Once again some valuable lessons have been learned
which will feed into the development of procedures.
On June 15, PSVs helped the council in exercising an
emergency rest centre. The event, run at Youlgrave
Village Hall, was designed to test the council’s capacity to “Thank you to the volunteers for their support in helping
to make this such a successful event!”
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