Petition against the Chief Constable – from his own men! 1892

This document may not be pretty, but it is certainly revealing! It is a petition to the Mayor signed by constables and sergeants in the Worcester Police force declaring that they had lost confidence in the Chief Constable Arthur Sommers as a truthful and sober man. In 1892, he involved in a drunken assault against his wife in the Police Charge House. In the words of a witness, Sergeant Thomas: "Mrs Sommers came running into the Charge Room screaming and said I must come to you for protection Sergt he has kicked me…he rushed at his wife and struck her a violent blow on the face and she fell down on the floor and fainted". Sommers then threatened to drown himself in the River Severn and fled into the High Street, where the commotion had attracted a crowd.

Despite being Chief Constable for only 8 years, Sommers had previously had a disagreement with Viscount Cobham over policing. The public attack on his wife Harriet was the last straw: questioning of other police officers revealed that Sommers had frequently been drunk on duty and had been suspected of embezzling police funds. The rest of the bundle includes statements by Sergeant Thomas; notes taken during cross examination of all involved; and witness statements of previous occasions when the Chief was drunk on duty or embezzled money. Presented with these serious accusations and this petition, he had little choice but to resign (on the grounds of ill health), and the collection contains letters from Sommers explaining his conduct and medical notes from various doctors attesting to his ill health.