The good practice of the police: an alternative approach in dealing with offenders who abuse/misuse alcohol.

The office of constable is taken by declaration and specifically says '... prevent all offences against the persons and properties ...'. The police service, like many hospitals and particularly casualty units, comes into initial contact with a high proportion of society's problems, including those related to people who cannot handle alcohol. This results directly or indirectly in a significant number of issues affecting social life detrimentally and at a tremendous cost to the public purse. These points at some time or another have been adequately illustrated by articles or television documentaries. The police service has a duty to prevent crime. The author maintains that, through the collaboration of the criminal justice agencies and health services, and using a simple approach, behaviour could be altered significantly enough to contribute towards a reduction in repeat offending and a consequent decline in the use of public funds. The author believes that a great number of people, too large to even contemplate quantifying, would have a better quality of life, a goal sought by many, and that the police service is well placed to participate constructively in the rehabilitation of offenders who have a 'drink' problem.