Blogging Policeman suspended

A Policeman has been suspended from duty after posting allegations of "misdeeds" in the Bermuda Police Service on his internet blog.

The Royal Gazette reported on P.c. Allan Palmer's Crushing Fools site earlier this month, after he wrote a message urging the community to unite against violence.The St. Vincent father-of-three, who describes himself in his online journal as an "independent thinker", posted another message on January 23, titled An Abuse of Power Stepping Back into the Stone Age of Policing.
The posting - since removed from the site - claimed that "ambitious people" within the Island's Police service are trying to take it back into the dark ages by silencing officers such as himself and "perverting the course of internal justice".

P.c. Palmer claimed there was a tight-knit "mafia" of Barbadian officers who attempted to manipulate issues to make sure things go their way. He alleged that he began to have a bad experience in Bermuda Police Service (BPS) after raising concerns about a "practice that was sanctioned by the ... Barbadian Mafia".

"To have the guts to speak out against the discrepancies was the beginning of my troubles in the Bermuda Police Service," he wrote. "The protective little bunch launched an all-out attack on me."

He added: "In their effort to cover up the misdeeds and to once again aid in the miscarriage of internal justice, I became the focus of their negative attention.

"P.c. Palmer wrote that the "war was intensified" after this newspaper published an article on his blog on January 8. He claimed that the BPS viewed his blog entries, one of which questioned whether official Police statistics should include additional categories, as negative.

P.c. Palmer, who launched Crushing Fools in December, is understood to have been a Policeman here for about four years with his contract due to end next April. He wrote in the removed post: "One thing I am confident of is the fact that I left St. Vincent and the Grenadines an efficient and an effective police officer. The same goals I use in policing St. Vincent and the Grenadines are the same goals I use here; I ensure the people of the community can enjoy the comfort of their own homes and community without fear."

This newspaper sent e-mails to the BPS last Thursday afternoon asking for comment. It is understood that P.c. Palmer was suspended on full pay that day after a meeting with his superiors.

The 41-year-old's next post was on Monday (January 28), when he wrote:"By now the world should know that I am on suspension from the Bermuda Police Service, pending the outcome of an investigation which was initiated after I posted the last article on this blog."

A spokesman for BPS said last night: "The Bermuda Police Service can confirm that P.c. Allan Palmer has been suspended in relation to allegations of conduct that may have breached the Bermuda Police Service discipline code.

"We won't go into any of the specifics that he's made on his website at this time but we are actively looking into his breach at this point in time. We will not say anything else as this is an ongoing discipline matter."
What do you think? Should Police officers face disciplinary action for criticising their superior officers? E-mail your thoughts to news@royalgazette.bm