KOMMERSANT, RAMBLER (Russia)
ST PETERSBURG – The police force in St. Petersburg and the surrounding region were recently given a ‘voluntary’ drug test, although no members of the force refused to take the test. Around 100 officers failed the test and were subsequently fired, Kommersant reports.
The police spokesperson could not explain why those officers who presumably knew they would fail the drug test took it anyway.
In addition, according to laws on police conduct, officers found to have run-ins with the law must be dismissed from their jobs. Kommersant reports that the St. Petersburg force also had to dismiss 63 officers for themselves having legal problems, mostly related to traffic violations.
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In response to the mini-scandal in St. Petersburg, the head of the Federal Security Service announced that all law enforcement officers will have to pass drug tests, Rambler.ru reported. The drug tests he is proposing will now be mandatory.
The police department in St. Petersburg was already having trouble filling its ranks, largely because cop pay is bad. The head of the police department explained that the department’s policy is to “take everyone who is qualified, but to quickly get rid of anyone who turns out to have issues that contradict the goals of law enforcement.”
