The relief is that of a famous constable of the Dublin Metropolitan Police (DMP) who died in 1917 trying to save the life of a trapped workman. The DMP was the British Policing System in Dublin in the years before independence. It co-existed with the RIC. While not much mentioned today, the force was famous for advances in forensic work, including the early use of photography, plaster casting, and electronic communications. One of its little know contributions to American Policing is the introduction of the term 'G-men' to refer to armed plainclothes police officers. American movies and legend incorrectly credit 1930's gangsters with creating the expression to mean 'government men.' But the Irish used the expression years earlier to describe the dreaded armed plainclothes detectives of 'G Division' of the DMP, thus 'G-men.' Irish American gangsters brought it with them.
No comments:
Post a Comment