Thames Valley officers reprimanded after fun video posted on YouTube.
We all know the feeling. The snowy slopes beckon and the urge to hurtle down them takes over but there is no sledge available. So you grab a tea tray, an old bag, a coat – or, if you are a police officer, a riot shield.
A group of officers from Thames Valley police have been reprimanded after one showed his ability to improvise by using a shield to fly down a hill in Oxfordshire.
Urged on by colleagues, he sat on the riot shield, grabbed on to the handles that could have been designed for this purpose and shot down the hill to hoots of laughter. Unfortunately for the officers, the escapade was filmed by an onlooker and posted on YouTube. The officers' bosses were not amused.
Superintendent Andrew Murray, Oxford city commander, said: "The snow has a habit of bringing out the child in all of us. I have spoken to the officers concerned and reminded them in no uncertain terms that tobogganing on duty, on police equipment and at taxpayers' expense, is a very bad idea should they wish to progress under my command."
The incident happened on Boars Hill in Oxford. The 41-second clip shows five or six officers, some also recording the adventure on their own cameras, in the snowy field, a police van parked in the background. One of the officers plonks the shield on the slope and is advised by another to hold on to the handles. He settles himself, holds tight and then two pals give him an almighty push.
Squealing, the officer slides off, one of his colleagues advising him: "Whatever happens, keep smiling." The shield proves to be an effective sledge, even skipping over a ditch at the foot of the hill.
Rick Latham, who filmed the clip on Tuesday, initially thought police were going to tell him off for attempting to get down the slope in a kayak. "They pulled up and we thought they were going to give us a hard time. Then they asked how slippery the snow was and one of them grabbed the shield. I asked if I could film it and they said that was fine. They said something like 'We're only human'."
Latham said he hoped the officers were not severely reprimanded. "You don't always build up the most positive image of the police but they broke the mould. They were chatty and pleasant. It was just nice to see them in that situation."
Source :
http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2010/ja...ce-reprimanded 
