violence involving serving Police officers are removed from the Police computer should give concern to all members of the Bermudian public. We think the public would be quite correct if it questioned whatever else might be removed or covered up for Police officers but not for the public. For years there have been reports that Police cover-up impaired driving offences for serving members of the Force and for retired members.

But more than that, we think the public should be concerned about the Police reaction to our story. The Police did not seem to consider it wrong to remove the names, but the Police did launch a search for the person or persons who leaked the information to The Royal Gazette . We have to wonder if the Police would have launched a similar search if the information had involved a member of the general public and not a Police officer.

The public should also note the reaction of Mr. Wayne Perinchief, the officer named in the story, who, instead of dealing with the issue at hand, has chosen to allege a conspiracy aimed at stopping him from becoming the Police Commissioner.

All this departs from the thrust of the story, which was that Police officers were being treated differently from other citizens investigated in connection with an offence of great public concern.

For the Police more than anyone else, justice most not only be done, it must be seen to be done. Those chosen to enforce the law must not be seen to be above the law but rather should be seen to be cleaner than the clean. When complaints are made to the Police about the conduct of ordinary citizens and they are investigated, the individuals' names remain in the Police computer, whether they are charged or not, let alone convicted. The Police say that the only time reports are removed is at the discretion of the Commissioner.

Clearly there are times -- for example, when confidential Police sources are involved -- when reports should be removed and stored elsewhere.

But to remove incident reports of domestic violence cases when they involve Police officers only invites the public to draw the conclusion that a double standard is being practised behind closed doors. It also suggests what we have long suspected, that the Police view cases of domestic violence differently from other forms of violence, which is unfortunate when a consensus has developed in the community that all types of violence should be treated equally.

It is not valid to say that these officers are accountable to the Commissioner and may be dealt with more harshly than others would. In any case, we think that "may'' is the important word in that sentence and, along with the public, we have doubts that much more than a "be a good boy, now'' would be the result. What is important is that no-one knows for certain what happened and doubts bring the Police Force into disrepute.

If the Police are seen to be operating one rule for the public and a softer rule for themselves then there can be no respect. Police accountability is a major issue in other countries today and we must be very careful that Bermuda's Police are accountable.

Bermuda's Police have a strong record of openly prosecuting officers for offences and that is as it should be. Changing a strange computer storage policy will strengthen that record further.