THE grouse by police in Lancashire about officers ending up in the dock for offences for which members of the public would be let off is understandable - but misguided nonetheless.

The problem concerns mainly minor motoring matters.

It may be basically unfair that civilian drivers might escape prosecution if they crash without injuring anyone whereas an officer, according to the Police Federation, would not.

And pure justice would expect, as the federation evidently does, that all cases should be treated alike by the Crown Prosecution Service - so that, in such cases, police personnel would not be singled out. However, what this outlooks forgets is that the police have to be seen to be paragons in their adherence to the law because they administer it to the public whose trust in their impartiality is vital.

Officers should understand that they cannot be suspected by the public of receiving special treatment even if, in truth, it is no more special than that given by the CPS to the public generally.

For, there is already an unpleasant doubt left over the police service's probity by virtue of it investigating its own in cases of complaint against it.

The police service is not strengthened if the suspicion is that officers can get away with things by virtue of being members of the police. And the CPS is right to demonstrate to the public that they are not above the law - even at its lowest reaches. Besides which officers can always have their day in court if they are innocent.

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.