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A woman police officer was shot and seriously injured as she investigated a burglary in Nottingham.

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Probationary officer Rachael Bown, 23, was attacked as she attempted to stop a man near the scene of a break-in at Lenton shortly before midnight.

Police said as Pc Bown challenged the suspect he drew a firearm and opened fire, hitting her in the stomach.

The officer, who was wearing body armour, is in a "serious" condition at the city's Queen's Medical Centre.

'Experienced colleague '

She was taken to the hospital's intensive care unit shortly after 0500 GMT after undergoing emergency surgery. Her family are with her at the hospital.

No one was arrested in the incident.

Ch Supt Marcus Beale, the divisional commander for Nottingham city, said Pc Bown had attended the incident at Lenton Boulevard with a long-serving colleague.

He said: "She was just coming to the end of her two-year probationary period and was working last night with an experienced colleague who [has] something like 15 or 16 years' service.

"She was wearing body armour. Unfortunately, she has been shot below where that body armour protects, which is a great shame."

Student Alex Wyatt, 21, who lives in the house where Pc Bown was shot, said his housemate, Jody Ottery, was in the property when an intruder broke in.

"From what I understand, he was on the first floor in his bedroom when he heard a window smash and someone force their way through the front door," he said.

"He came downstairs and saw this guy who just ran, so he called the police."

Alan Simpson, MP for Nottingham South, said that the shooting highlighted several areas of concern.

"There are two sets of issues to be addressed. One is the adequacy of current body armour, and I'll be talking about that with the police later," he said.

"The second is the question of how we're dealing with the availability of guns on the streets and the prospect of them entering into more routine crimes that had traditionally not been associated with guns."

'Emergency'

Victor Bates, whose wife Marian was shot dead by armed robbers at their jewellery shop in Arnold in September 2003, said the incidence of gun crime in Nottingham was now an "emergency" and police action had failed to combat the problem.

He said: "One cannot see anything that's been done to control the number of guns in Nottingham.

"What we need are much more rigorous police methods. We need stop and search, we need the premises of known criminals searched on a regular basis, so that the guns may be taken out of society."

In recent years Nottingham has been at the centre of a number of high-profile incidents involving gun-related crime.

Two years after the Marian Bates case, two gangland thugs were convicted of the murder of schoolgirl Danielle Beccan, 14, in a drive-by shooting in October 2004.

However, police say the number of shootings fell by 74% in 2005.

Story from :
BBC NEWS
Published: 2006/02/14 11:54:32 GMT

Nottingham is not far from me and they really do have a problem with gun crime. Many senior officers have come and gone over the years unable to solve it, it's about it was sorted out.

It's fecking disgusting! I live in Nottingham and in the part where the gun-crime and drugs are the worst of all. 10 years ago if someone tried to steal my bag I'd have kicked their arse - now I would just assume that they have a gun and hand it over quietly. It's not Detroit FFS! We have graffitti all over the walls that says 'Goodbye Danielle' and the bloodstains were on the pavement outside my house for about 10 days.

Fecking sick of it!

Thankfully gun crime in this neck of the woods is still uncommon with the favoured weapon still being knifes.

The there was an incident a few days ago when children found a gun in their garden in a notorious part of Wellingborough.

The next thing there will be moaning at will be the body armour being too short. The overt vests while protecting the major organs don't fully cover the stomach area. But they are restrictive already reducing the number of foot chases due to their weight and fitment. I think any lengthening will further hinder the officers.

Strangely enough I was watching a night of American Police chases etc the other evening and their officers if their wore vests ,and I imagine they all do ,used covert less clumbersome ones that restrict the movements of the officer less.

Not having seen a covert vest I don't know their construction but the overt ones have 3 plates one for the back and two for the front all zipped into a cover that resembles a body-warmer and they have to be a close fit to the body for maximum effectiveness.

But even if you had full military armour there as still areas where you can be shot.

Policing is becoming more and more dangerous by the day but would arming them solve anything or would it encourage the criminals to shot to get away knowing that they would probably get shot at trying to escape.

I wish I knew the answers to those things Larry. It's just getting ridiculous. When I went to pay my rent a few weeks back I heard gunfire in the middle of the day and there were toddlers running around in the middle of it. I assume nobody was hurt as there was nothing on the news later but it's happening far too much now. I think it's drugs related as it started getting worse about the same time that the drugs problem started increasing. As I write this now I can hear banging and drilling noises as my upstairs neighbour (a drug-dealer) is being evicted by the council. God knows why they're evicting him now, he's been dealing drugs since before I lived here and he throws used syringes out of the window every other day where they land on my front lawn and I end up having to pick them up and throw them away before the local kids get hold of them...

When my other neighbour invited me in for a coffee he went into the kitchen for a 'crack-break'! He even offered me some with my coffee! and this from a man who lives with his 4 year old son!

15 February 2006 09:58:49 GMT
viewLondon

A policewoman who was shot and injured after challenging a burglary suspect is awake and speaking to her family in hospital.

Rachael Bown, a 23-year-old probationary officer, was shot shortly before midnight on Monday night in the Lenton area of Nottingham after attending a burglary with a more experienced male officer.

She remains in a serious condition in the Queen's Medical Centre after undergoing emergency surgery, but police have now said that her signs of recovery are "very encouraging".

Nottinghamshire police have also expressed their gratitude for the messages of support and flowers that have arrived for the injured police officer.

"We are very touched by these messages which have reminded us just how much ordinary people really do care when police officers are attacked in this way," a police statement read.

"We have also been overwhelmed with flowers which have been sent to the hospital or the scene or to the nearest police station. It's very moving that people feel so strongly about this."

No-one has as yet been arrested in connection with the shooting and officers have urged anybody with any information to contact police.

Large areas of the Lenton area were cordoned off yesterday for detailed forensic examinations of the crime scene.

PC Bown is the third female police officer to be shot while on duty in the past four months, following the murder of PC Sharon Beshenivsky and the wounding of her colleague, PC Teresa Milburn, in Bradford in November.

The pair were shot while attending the scene of a reported robbery at a travel agency in Bradford, West Yorkshire.

Thank god for that, that's great news

It's great news that she is recovering well. Let's just hope she makes a full recovery then.

Thu Feb 16, 2006 2:41 PM GMT

LONDON (Reuters) - The 23-year-old policewoman shot as she investigated reports of a burglary in Nottingham is in a serious but stable condition after undergoing further surgery following a "setback" in her condition, police said on Thursday.

Probationary officer Rachael Bown was shot in the lower abdomen, below her body armour, in the early hours of Monday as she and an experienced male colleague tried to stop a suspect.

Bown had emergency surgery following the shooting and again on Thursday morning following a setback.

"Rachael has now come out of surgery, staff ... say her condition is stable and she is now back in intensive care," a police spokeswoman said.

Nottinghamshire Chief Constable Steve Green praised the hospital for their work.

"I am, as ever, humbled by the skills of the surgeons and staff whose brilliant work saved Rachael's life in the first critical hours," he said in a statement. "Words cannot express our gratitude for their continuing expert care and dedication.

"We hope and pray Rachael will make good progress and that her youth and strength will continue to stand her in good stead."

No one has yet been arrested over the shooting in the Lenton area of Nottingham and police say it is not clear whether the gunman was connected to the burglary.

The incident comes just over two months after WPC Sharon Beshenivsky was shot dead after she was called to an armed robbery in Bradford.

Nottingham has seen a spate of gun crime in recent years, blamed mainly on drugs, and police have said they were aware there was a climate of fear in some parts of the city.

17 February 2006 09:44:07 GMT
viewLondon

A 24-year-old man is being sought in connection with the shooting of a Nottinghamshire policewoman.

Officers from Nottinghamshire police are keen to trace Trevon Kyron Thomas, from the Bilborough area of Nottingham, who was seen in the Lenton area of the city around the time that Rachael Bown was shot and injured.

PC Bown, a 23-year-old probationary officer, was shot in the stomach while attending a suspected burglary with a more experienced male colleague shortly before midnight on Monday night.

She remains in intensive care in Queen's Medical Centre and police want to talk to Mr Thomas "as a matter of urgency".

They have released a photo of the man they want to question, who is described as a dark skinned black male, with short, cropped black hair, brown eyes and a slight facial growth.

Police believe he is 5ft 9ins tall and of slim build. He also has ear piercings in both earlobes and has one or more gold teeth to the right side of his mouth.

Mr Thomas is said to have been born in Trinidad and speaks with a mild Caribbean accent.

Detective Chief Inspector Dave Giles of Nottinghamshire police said: "I am now in a position to provide you with information on an individual we are keen to trace in connection with the investigation into the shooting of PC Rachael Bown."

He added: "Have you seen this man? Do you know where he is? Do you know anything about him which could help this inquiry."

PC Bown suffered what was described as a "setback in her condition" yesterday and was rushed back into surgery and is now said to be stable following her second operation.

1.30pm
Friday February 17, 2006

Police today boarded a plane at Heathrow airport and arrested a man reported to be a suspect in the shooting of probationary police officer Rachael Bown.

The arrest came just hours after detectives named a suspect they wanted to trace in connection with the shooting in Nottingham earlier this week of the officer, who is in a stable condition in hospital.

Nottingham police said earlier this morning they wanted to contact Trevon Kyron Thomas, 24, from the Bilborough area of Nottingham, in connection with the shooting.

Sky News reported later that it was Mr Thomas who was held after police boarded a stationary aircraft at Heathrow airport at around 11am.
The Metropolitan police and Nottinghamshire police refused to immediately confirm whether it was Mr Thomas who had been held or whether the arrest was linked to the shooting inquiry in any way.

Speaking before reports of an arrest, Detective Chief Inspector Dave Giles said: "I'm appealing for any information which could help us trace this man as a matter of urgency."

The senior investigating officer added: "If you see this man or know where he is now, you should not approach him but dial 999 immediately."

Nottinghamshire police have issued a photograph of Mr Thomas. He is described as a dark-skinned black male, 5ft 9in and of slim build. He is thought to have short, cropped black hair.

He has slight facial growth and brown eyes, the force said. He has piercings in both ears in which he sometimes wears ear studs, and he has one or more gold teeth.

Mr Thomas was born in Trinidad and speaks with a mild Caribbean accent.

Ms Bown, 23, was shot in the stomach shortly before midnight on Monday while investigating a burglary in the Lenton area of the city.

This morning, Ms Bown was awake in her bed at the Queen's Medical Centre in Nottingham after undergoing a second emergency operation yesterday.

Ms Bown had the operation after a "setback" in her condition. She had undergone five hours of life-saving emergency surgery on Tuesday.

She is nearing the end of her two-year probation period and had just started working on the beat in the city centre when she was shot.

Ms Bown was with an experienced male colleague following up a report of a burglary when the pair spotted a suspect. She was hit in the lower abdomen, below the level of her body armour, just seconds after leaping out of the passenger seat of her patrol car.

Officers have so far said it was unclear whether the gunman was in any way connected with the burglary at the house in Lenton Boulevard.

Ms Bown was nearing the end of a two-year probationary period with the force and had only recently transferred to the city centre beat. Her family have kept a vigil at her bedside since she was injured.

Guardian