AN incident early on Friday evening, July 6, made me fully aware of the lack of police presence on the streets of Malton.

The time was 17.50 and I was walking down Newbiggin after doing some shopping at the supermarket, to my disgust I witnessed a male urinating in the shop doorway where I work. After trying verbally to stop him with no effect, it was decided that the police should be called.

To my amazement, I was told that there were no officers free and that someone would call the following morning. This response totally took me by surprise as the person in question was still near the shop.

This is not an attack against the officers in Malton but against the powers that be who obviously are of the opinion that someone doing five miles an hour over the speed limit is more of a threat to the town that someone committing the offence of openly urinating in the main shopping street. If people like this were actually aware that there were officers "on the beat" then they might think twice about committing such acts.

CCTV and officers in cars have a valuable part to play in reducing the crime rate but they are not a substitute for the physical presence of a policeman walking the streets.

The ordinary person in the street should be allowed to walk about their town without having to feel threatened or having to witness such acts as I did.

SYLVIA MILSON

Malton

Updated: 09:29 Thursday, July 19, 2001