Spotlight - 10.2019

56 Spotlight 10/2019 THE BASICS

THE BASICS

Easy English

Here, you’ll find a dialogue, with facts and

exercises related to it, at the A2 level of English —

basic language points you may have forgotten or

missed before. By VANESSA CLARK

EASY

Dialogue

Here, we present lives from around the English-speaking world.

This time, we’re talking to Steve Milner, a police officer.

What do you do?

I’m a custody sergeant. If you’re arrested, you’ll be brought to

the police station and put into a cell in the custody suite. I’m the

officer who books you in.

How do you book someone in?

I take your name and address and check that you understand

why you’ve been arrested. I ask if you have any medical or men-

tal health problems, or problems with drugs or alcohol, and I can

get a doctor or nurse for you. I can also organize a lawyer for you.

Do you take the prisoners’ clothes?

No, they can keep their own clothes on. We take everything from

their pockets and also take their shoes and belt — anything that

could be dangerous.

What are the cells like?

It’s not five-star accommodation. There’s a basic bed and a blan-

ket. There’s a toilet, but there’s no privacy. We have cameras in

all the cells.

Is it safer to work as a custody sergeant than on the streets?

Usually, yes, but prisoners sometimes attack us. They hit us, or

spit at us, or try to bite us. We also have to clean up if they vomit

or go to the toilet on the floor. Happy days!

Show and tell

Now, find out about something Steve Milner carries: a police

baton.

In England, Scotland and Wales, most police officers don’t carry

guns. The only officers who carry guns are those who work in

high-risk situations, such as at airports or outside Parliament. In

London, only 10 per cent of officers are armed.

Other countries with unarmed police are Ireland, New Zealand,

Norway and Iceland.

So, how do the British police protect themselves? They carry a

stick called a “baton”. As well as the baton, police officers can car-

ry CS gas, and they are allowed to carry a Taser to give an electric

shock if needed.

All officers on the streets wear stab vests, which protect them if

they are attacked with a knife.

Most British officers say they don’t want to be armed them-

selves, but they would like to have more teams of armed col-

leagues for extra support.

armed [A:md]

, bewaffnet

baton [(bÄtQn]

, Knüppel, Schlagstock

book: ~ sb. in [bUk]

, jmdn. aufnehmen,

jmdn. einchecken

CS gas [)si: es (gÄs]

, hier: Tränengas

custody sergeant

[(kVstEdi (sA:dZEnt]

, Justizwachtmeister(in)

custody suite

[(kVstEdi swi:t]

, Haftzellenblock

spit [spIt]

, spucken

stab vest [(stÄb vest]

, Stichschutzweste

Taser [(teIzE]

, Taser, Elektroschock-

pistole

vomit [(vQmIt]

, sich übergeben

Cabinet of curiosities

Steve Milner, police officer