Duke Lavery

Duke Lavery is a fictional character from General Hospital, an American soap opera on the ABC network, primarily portrayed by Ian Buchanan. The role was created by executive producer Gloria Monty and co-head writer Norma Monty. Duke is introduced as the mysterious owner of a local night club who falls in love with police chief Anna Devane (Finola Hughes). Unbeknownst to the rest of Port Charles, Duke is laundering money for the mob but when his criminal ties cost him Anna, he teams with her ex-husband Robert Scorpio (Tristan Rogers) to bring down the mob. Duke and Anna's romance becomes quite popular among fans achieving supercouple status and rivaling Anna's romance with Robert. In 1987, Duke's feud with the Jerome crime family leads to Anna miscarrying their unborn child. Duke and Anna's story comes to a tragic end in 1989 when Duke is presumed dead. The producers would recast the role with Greg Beecroft as Jonathan Paget who was revealed to be Duke with plastic surgery only for the character to be killed off in 1990 – dying in Anna's arms due fan disapproval.

In 2012, Buchanan reprised the role of Duke and the recast was retconned as Paget is revealed to be an impostor. However, Duke's return turns out to be a similar ordeal when it is revealed that Anna's longtime foe Cesar Faison (Anders Hove) has been posing as Duke in an attempt to seduce Anna. The real Duke is rescued and reunited with Anna and they soon renew their feud with the Jeromes with Duke teaming up with Sonny Corinthos (Maurice Benard) to bring down Julian Jerome (William deVry). Duke is killed off in 2015 thanks to a botched hit on Julian's orders leaving Anna devastated and craving justice.

Storylines

1986–1989
Duke is introduced as a night club owner who is immediately smitten with police chief Anna Devane (Finola Hughes). Having fallen for Anna, Duke is torn between their budding romance and his ties to "Operating Tumble Dry"—a money laundering operation for the mafia. The arrival of his associate Damon Grenville (Will Jeffries) puts pressure on Duke to eliminate Anna's fellow officer Frisco Jones (Jack Wagner) who has become suspicious of the operation. Duke maintains his innocence when Frisco and his wife Felicia (Kristina Wagner) skip town after the organization frames her for theft. On the orders of one of his superiors Mr. Big—Duke proposes to Anna and she accepts only to break it off when her ex-husband Robert Scorpio (Tristan Rogers) exposes Duke's mob ties. Hoping to distance himself from the underworld, Duke appeals to Mr. Big's boss, fellow Scotland native Angus McKay (Guy Doleman) and Guy assures Duke that he will soon be free to marry Anna. Duke proposes to Anna again only for Grenville to bomb her home leading to Duke making a full confession to Anna's co-chief Burt Ramsey (Bob Hastings) – who secretly operates as Mr. Big—hoping to protect Anna and her daughter Robin (Kimberly McCullough). After he is falsely convicted of Ramsey's shooting and imprisoned, Duke teams up with Robert to expose him. Angus arranges for Duke's escape setting him up to be killed. With Robert's help, Duke fakes his death when he gets shot by Ramsey and returns to bring down Ramsey. The final showdown leaves Duke paralyzed. Duke recovers and is released from prison for his cooperation and he shocks Angus by revealing that they are father and son.

In 1987, Duke reconnects with his former flame Sister Camellia (Elizabeth Keifer) who turns out to be Duke's half-sister. Meanwhile, Angus appeals to Duke to help him end the mob war with the Jerome family. Angus commits suicide hoping it will end with him, and makes Duke promise to protect Camellia. During their trip to L'Orleans, Canada for Angus's memorial, Anna becomes suspicious of Duke and Camellia's bond. Though Duke implores her not to dig into their past, Camellia discovers she is not Angus's daughter after all and she leaves the convent and schemes to win Duke for herself by contacting sleazy reporter Mark Carlin (Gary McGurk). Carlin exposes Duke's secret past interrupting his wedding to Anna as he is arrested and hounded by the press. Four years earlier, Duke had covered up the murder of Evan Jerome when Camellia killed him in self-defense and blocked out the traumatic event. After standing trial, Camellia and Duke are acquitted and she leaves town realizing Duke will never love her. The ordeal leads to Anna leaving Duke again. The couple is married in a traditional Scottish wedding on October 19, 1987.

In 1988, Anna is kidnapped by Grant Putnam (Brian Patrick Clarke) and a desperate Duke turns to mob kingpin and Evan's father Victor Jerome (Jack Axelrod) for help. However, Robert gets to Anna first with Duke witnessing their embrace. Duke struggles to keep his associations with the Jeromes secret but things go awry when Victor's youngest son Julian (Jason Culp) takes a bullet meant for Duke and makes a deathbed request for Duke to help Victor legitimize the mob. Meanwhile, Victor's power hungry daughter Olivia (Tonja Walker) sets out to seduce Duke. Realizing she can't steal Duke away from a pregnant Anna, Olivia decides to kill him by trapping him inside a falling elevator only for Anna to fall victim instead and suffer a miscarriage. To further complicate matters, Anna is falsely accused of trying to kill Olivia and arrested. Anna is acquitted when Victor's illegitimate son Dino (Chris DeRose) is revealed to be the culprit.

In 1989, when Duke testifies against the mob, knowing they could retaliate against him and his family, Duke fakes his death in an explosion and goes into witness protection. After Victor's death, assuming the danger has passed, Duke decides to come out of hiding. In late 1989, Jonathan Paget (Greg Beecroft) came to town claiming to be Duke with plastic surgery but he is killed by Julian just as he meets up with Anna in early 1990.

2012–2015
In 2012, Duke is happily reunited with Anna who pushes him away still shaken by her experience with Faison—as he'd been masquerading as Duke for months. Meanwhile, Anna is torn between her feelings for Duke and her current lover Luke Spencer (Anthony Geary). Duke gives her space and gets a job working for A. J. Quartermaine (Sean Kanan) at ELQ Industries. Anna finally breaks it off with Luke and reunites with Duke; they plan to attend Felicia's wedding to Mac Scorpio (John J. York) only for Duke to be left comatose after he falls into a trap set for Anna by Liesl Obrecht (Kathleen Gati) – the woman who had helped keep him captive on behalf of Faison. Duke awakens and Anna vows to make her pay. When Tracy Quartermaine (Jane Elliot) regains control of the company ELQ leaving Duke unemployed, he instead goes to work for media mogul, Derek Wells (William deVry). Meanwhile, Duke receives word that Julian Jerome is still alive. Duke worries for Anna when she leaves town to find Faison and when he tries to find her, he is taken captive by Faison. Anna rescues him and reunites Duke with a presumed dead Robin. The happiness is short lived as Duke learns that Wells is actually Julian and Duke immediately quits his job. Duke secretly partners up with mobster Sonny Corinthos (Maurice Benard) to bring down Julian once and for all. The alliance puts a strain on Duke and Anna's relationship and Duke quits Sonny's organization but they remain friends and Duke provides Sonny with a false alibi for the night of A. J.'s murder. However, Anna is forced to arrest Duke when his statement is revealed to be false. Duke refuses to turn on Sonny and is sent to Pentonville to await trial. Impressed by Duke's loyalty, Sonny makes a plea deal that sends him to prison and frees Duke and Duke agrees to run Sonny's organization in his absence. Duke and Anna split when he calls out her hypocrisy as she had also stepped outside the law to deal with Faison. Though he pines for Anna, Duke starts dating Lucy Coe (Lynn Herring). Sonny's enforcer Shawn Butler (Sean Blakemore) convinces Duke to hire former Jerome employee Jordan Ashford (Vinessa Antoine). However, Duke is disappointed to learn Jordan is an undercover cop and makes plans to eliminate her. Meanwhile, Lucy breaks up with Duke and encourages him to reunite with Anna. After they dance the tango at the Nurses Ball, Duke and Anna declare their love for each other and make plans to run away together and Duke calls off the hit on Jordan. However, before Duke and Anna can leave town, he falls victim to a botched hit from former enforcer Carlos Rivera (Jeffrey Vincent Parise). A wounded Duke manages to meet up with Anna only to die in her arms. Anna vows to avenge Duke and bring down Julian once and for all.

In March 2016, Doctor Griffin Munro (Matt Cohen) comes to town and takes an interest in Anna. Anna is shocked when Griffin reveals that he is Duke's son.

Development

Creation and casting
 Ian Buchanan, had been working as a model for 10 years before he joined the cast of General Hospital in 1986 as Duke Lavery. Buchanan credited the soap as being his first professional acting gig. Buchanan had previously appeared in an episode of CBS's The Equalizer in a role that featured no dialogue The ordeal left him a bit roughed up with Buchanan questioning if he'd made the right choice to give up modeling for acting. General Hospital would change his mind about acting. Buchanan was doing performance art in New York City when executives from ABC saw one of his performances. Buchanan didn't take the network's interest seriously. "It's a leading romantic lead" Buchanan said of the original character description. According to Soap Opera Digest, the casting process was quite extensive due to executive producer Gloria Monty being so particular about crafting the role. Aside from the audition sides, Monty insisted that the character wasn't truly developed until after Buchanan was cast. They had auditioned nearly a hundred actors and no one caught Monty's eye. Then Monty heard about Buchanan who had been living in New York at the time though her contacts thought he wouldn't fit because of his lack of acting experience. The agent sent in a tape of Buchanan reading a story as a reference. "I just thought, there's a terrific amount of magnetism in it" Monty said of Buchanan's audition reel. They brought Buchanan in to audition and he got the job. Though impressed by his reading, what appealed to Monty the most was that Buchanan was an unknown. "I have always believed in never bringing on someone who has been seen before" she said. Buchanan praised Gloria Monty's for guiding him in creating Duke. "If she'd told me everything at once, I'd have had a [nervous] breakdown" he said. Monty allowed for the slow development and exploration of Duke's history. "She's so intuitive" Buchanan said of Monty. "She allows me to find things on my own" he continued.

Characterization
Gloria Monty described what she initially looked for in the role to Soap Opera Digest. "I was looking for a very rough edge to him. Someone who was physically attractive and someone who had style." Co-head writer Monty's sister, Norma Monty said Duke was conceived to be a "nightclub person, on the edge of the old times. A thirties type." Also, [Gloria] Monty intended to cast an actor without an accent. Ian Buchanan would describe Duke as a "combination good-guy/bad-guy" who very "complex." While Buchanan said he himself his own personality presents some complexities, Duke's complexities are more "extreme." Buchanan further described Duke as having a "Good heart and soul." However, he was "corrupted by society." Buchanan said he could never be friends with Duke because "He's too unpredictable." "Duke's changed as I've gotten more comfortable with my acting" Buchanan said in July 1987. He continued, "I like the way he's developed. A lot of me goes into him." In an interview with The Newfoundland Herald in 1988, Buchanan his views on Duke. "I think he is probably a lot like what I would have been if I had stayed in Scotland." He further described Duke as "grumpy, groany, bad tempered" and "always moody." When asked if Duke was "good or bad," Buchanan said, "I think he is pretty stupid sometimes." Everyone has those moments though "he really means well." Buchanan likened Duke to a modern-day Robin Hood. Duke never does anything that is "just evil or bad." He always has a reason for the bad things he does. After his 2012 return, Buchanan described the character as a "bad boy who fell in love and then wanted to be a good boy." However, it is always a struggle for Duke. He continued that "Duke, was always a little duplicitous."

Relationships

The character was conceived by Gloria Monty as a romantic interest for Finola Hughes's Anna Devane. Monty was very picky about Anna's next love interest considering the success or her pairing with Robert Scorpio played by Tristan Rogers. "I know Anna needed something a little bigger than life" Monty explained to Soap Opera Digest. She continued, "Whoever we found had to be on par if not a step better than Scorpio..." Had Anna and Duke failed, Norma Monty revealed the backup plan – "Duke would have become a very bad man... Anna would be a heroine and put him in jail." Anna and Duke found success among fans and critics alike. The romance was very melodramatic as Monty had borrowed from one of her favorite movies, the 1941 film A Woman's Face starring Joan Crawford. Monty said the duo are frequently faced with "life-and-death" and in contrast to other pairings the relationship is "forbidden love" which is why it's attractive. Buchanan praised the writing for Anna and Duke. "The way they told the love story was like an old movie." While Buchanan admittedly didn't see what the big fuss was about the chemistry between Duke and Anna, he believed it was his great relationship with Hughes off screen that had something to do with the duo's success. "I'm very comfortable around her" Buchanan said of his co-star. As a newcomer to soaps and acting, Buchanan remarked that "Working with Finola is a very high point." He continued, "We bound off each other really well because there's a great deal of trust" he said of their dynamic. Buchanan later said that while "I don't make friends easily" Hughes was the exception to the rule. Duke also serves as a father figure to Anna and Robert's young daughter, Robin (Kimberly McCullough). Buchanan appreciated the development of the family unit as opposed to the usual action packed plots.

"It just could be the start of a new kind of trouble," said Buchanan of the duo's impending nuptials in early 1987. The duo's success provided the writers under executive producer H. Wesley Kenney with the opportunity to further complicate Duke and Anna's romance by having Duke "pine" for Sister Camellia (Elizabeth Keifer) while always feels a strong connection to her first love and father of her child, Robert. Buchanan wasn't really a fan of the multiple triangles for the couple. Camellia is a woman from Duke's past whom he later learns is his half-sister. According to their backstory, Camellia was in love with Duke and they were unaware of the "connection." Wesley Kenney admitted that the undoing of Camellia's paternity was to make fans more comfortable with a potential romance. While, Duke and Anna survive the external threats, there were more obstacles to come. In 1988, the series introduced mob princess Olivia St. John (Tonja Walker) who unsuccessfully tries to seduce Duke away from Anna. Of the ongoing conflict and threats to their relationship, mostly because of how Duke makes a living and his past, Buchanan said "If it were real life I think she would have told him to go hell by now." While he tried to accommodate to the stories, Buchanan admitted that he struggled with trying to sell Duke as showing interests in other women. "It was hard for [Keifer] and Tonja Walker (Olivia) to get between Finola and I."

Departure (1989)
In the spring of 1989, it was announced that Buchanan would depart the series to do a play in Europe. Head writer Pat Falken Smith revealed that Buchanan had remained under contract with the series. Falken Smith described Buchanan's departure as a "very exciting." To facilitate Buchanan's exit, in story, Duke testifies against mobster Victor Jerome (Jack Axelrod) putting himself in danger. As Duke was written out in April 1989 in a "heroic blaze of glory" presumably killed in an explosion, there were no plans to recast or introduce a new love interest for Anna. In a 2010 interview, Buchanan admitted that at the time, he couldn't imagine staying for decades. "I was only there for three years but it seemed like 20 years of my life." In 2007 Buchanan revealed to Soaps in Depth that the question he was asked the most was why did he leave. His response: "Well I had to do something." In 2010, Buchanan revealed that sudden changes in writers and producers attributed to his departure. "I wasn't experienced enough to roll with it. It was too jarring" he admitted. Buchanan also had received offers for other work and his manager advised him to take capitalize on the opportunities while he could.

On October 27, 1989, Duke was re-introduced under head writer Gene Palumbo hiding out in a safe house. He soon devises a plan that will allow him to reunite with Anna. "Duke's journey back into her life will take some incredible turns" Palumbo said. Over the course of seven episodes, Duke undergoes plastic surgery to hide his identity. "I never really knew how that played out. I did go back and did several shows wrapped up in bandages with little slits for eyes. I'm not sure what that was about" Buchanan said of his brief return in 1989. However, Buchanan's return at the time was to facilitate a recast. When asked about how he felt about the decision to recast in 2010, Buchanan said he initially didn't think much of it, but admitted that upon further reflection, he questioned it. For a couple of episodes, Deke Anderson played the bandaged Duke. There was speculation (as indicated by articles in the Bluefield Daily Telegraph & The Index Journal ) that Anderson could possibly carry on in the role as Lavery.

Duke returned to the canvas on January 19, 1990, with Greg Beecroft in the role using the alias Jonathan Paget. The decision to recast was only made when Buchanan decided not to renew his contract in the summer of 1989. However, the recast was short lived and Beecroft's character was killed off after only seven weeks.

Return (2012)

While Buchanan went on to do other things, he appeared on several other soaps and in 2007 he said he'd be open to reprising the role but, "They never asked me, which was the interesting thing." He described himself as "totally open" to a return but there had never been a "serious" discussion about it. On August 23, 2012, Soap Opera Network reported on the rumor of Buchanan returning to the series. Buchanan had just made his final appearance as Ian McAllister on Days of Our Lives. Buchanan responded to fan questions about his return on Twitter with the statement "My tweets are sealed." Meanwhile, executive producer Frank Valentini teased a huge surprise for the episode airing on Monday August 27. Ian Buchanan reappeared for the first time in 23 years on August 27, 2012 and the 1990 recast was officially retconned with Paget being scripted as an impostor. "I've come to the conclusion that's why nobody can use a cell phone in the studio" Buchanan said joking to Soaps in Depth in reference to his top secret return. Buchanan didn't even tell his longtime friend and co-star Finola Hughes that he had visited the studio. Buchanan revealed that he was unaware of the story the writers had planned for him when he agreed to return. Viewers quickly realized that something had gone wrong with Duke as he had become quite un-apologetically evil as Duke had suddenly killed Steve Burton's beloved Jason Morgan. Buchanan was afraid of the fan backlash and hesitant about playing the story because it was far removed from the man viewers had come to know and love. However, even this return proved to be not all it seemed to be. On November 12, Duke was revealed to be in impostor once again as super villain Cesar Faison (Anders Hove) had disguised himself as Duke in an attempt to win Anna's affections. Faison had been holding the real Duke captive in a clinic.

Death (2015)
On March 27, 2015, Michael Logan of TV Guide reported that Buchanan's Duke was once again to be killed off. However, the network did not comment on the decision. The April 13 issue of Soap Opera Digest reported that a "back from the death character" was soon to be killed off as part of cast cuts. Errol Lewis from Soap Opera Network assumed Buchanan's Duke and General Hospital were the character and soap in question due to Logan's previous report. Leading up to Buchanan's exit, Duke is "blinded by vengeance" the actor explained. He continued, "I think [Duke]'s come to the realization that if you revenge, be prepared to dig two graves." The character is killed off on the May 12, 2015 episode—the victim of a botched mob hit. Buchanan's final scenes aired on May 14. "I have mixed feelings about it, but it is what it is" Buchanan said of his departure. Much like viewers, Buchanan himself went through a grieving process. In praise of the writing, Buchanan said "[it] was very good right up until the end." Due to the plot direction, Buchanan admitted that he expected his character to be written out and others seemed to catch on as well before Buchanan finally met with Frank Valentini about the developments. "The writing's been on the wall!" In reference to Duke's "out of character" actions prior to his death, Buchanan felt "justified" because the character had always been a "loner." Having lost Anna, Duke didn't have anyone to hold him accountable or expect better from him so he didn't do better. While some viewers questioned Duke's loyalty to fellow mobster Sonny Corinthos (Maurice Benard) over Anna, Buchanan appreciated that the writing actually acknowledged it. In just being the character, without questioning the writing, Buchanan was able to identify Duke's motives for himself – "Duke wanted to be a man again." Buchanan explained that the process was made much more difficult due to the fact that his co-stars always wanted to discuss it.

In May 2016, it was announced that Buchanan would briefly reprise his role as an "apparition" of Duke in scenes opposite Finola Hughes. While he was happy to be invited back, Buchanan admitted "I wasn't quite sure what it meant." Buchanan praised the writing for his return scenes as "poignant." He continued, "it was a really hectic day because it was a [May] sweeps week, and there were some big stunts going on and some big reveals, but of course it was lovely to be part of it." While Buchanan did not get the chance to work with Matt Cohen who had recently joined the cast as Duke's long lost son, the actor said of the plot twist, "I think it's very nice." Buchanan made his final appearance as Duke's ghost on Friday, May 27. The actor described the final scenes in which Duke and Anna share one final dance as "a way of him setting [Anna] free to move on with her life."

Buchanan returned for one episode on March 8, 2017, when his character appeared as a hallucination of the deranged Olivia St. John (Tonja Walker).

Reception
The character of Duke Lavery received positive reviews from both viewers and critics. During his three years at General Hospital, Candace Havens described Buchanan as one of daytime's "hottest commodities." While comparisons to Tristan Rogers' Scorpio was expected, Buchanan quickly amassed a passionate fan base of his own. According to Geoff Meeker, fans initially did not like Duke but they soon warmed up to him. By 1988, Buchanan had become a "sex symbol." In 1987, Soap Opera Digest listed the character of Duke Lavery as one of "TV's Sexiest Men." Michael Logan described Duke as General Hospital's "sly, sophisticated mob front man." Logan declared that Buchanan became a sensation with his sleek, slick, gangsteresque style." A "throwback to the matinee idols of the '30s and '40s." Duke was the first of Anna's love interests to "really excite" viewers according to Jason Bonderoff. Initial plans to make Duke a villain for Anna to bust were abandoned due to fan response. Not everyone approved of Robert and Anna because he was already with another woman. One fan likened the character to Humphrey Bogart." Bonderoff stated that Duke and Anna were the show's most popular duo since Luke and Laura. Damon L. Jacobs of We Love Soaps declared "Duke and Anna were a fan phenomenon." In 1988, Buchanan won the Soap Opera Digest Award for Best Male Newcomer. He was also nominated for Outstanding Hero Award in 1988. Jamey Giddens listed the Greg Beecroft "recast" of Duke at No. 4 on his list of "Daytime's 10 Most Insane Recast!" Soap Opera Digest said it would've been easier to just allow Duke to stay dead instead of "reuniting" him with Anna only to kill him off again. "It was a grizzly, terrifying sight – and a monumental shock to the couple's loyal fans."

Michael Fairman described Buchanan's return as "quite simply a stunner" considering the character's history. The news of Duke's reappearance spread rather quickly making headlines everywhere. The revelation became a trending topic on Twitter in the United States, as well as internationally. Sara Bibel said Buchanan's unannounced return was quite the "shocker." Soaps in Depth categorized Duke's return as a "sudden revelation." TV Source Magazine listed Duke's return, along with several other "shocking returns" as the reason for General Hospital being the most improved show for the year 2012. Mallory from Serial Drama responded with several expletives and the statement "OHMIGOD MY HEAD EXPLODED." In reference to the General Hospital's lackluster surprises, Mallory said "I thought this big reveal would be neither large or revelatory but oh my WOW, was I wrong." Of Buchanan's initial return, Connie Passalacqua said "I actually screamed!  And clapped! Finally, a soap keeping a plot twist secret!" Mallory further praised the final reveal that Faison had been masquerading as Duke while holding the real Duke hostage. "How freaking great was today's episode? What a payoff!" On-Air On-Soaps praised the storyline of Robin's presumed death and return as the Best Storyline of 2012 as it featured the shocking returns of both Faison and Duke.

News of the decision to kill off Duke was very poorly received by fans and critics. However, Michael Fairman of On-Air On-Soaps suggested that Buchanan's departure could potentially propel story considering how little the character was being used. Errol Lewis from Soap Opera Network said Duke's story was ending too soon. "Beyond the fact that Ian Buchanan is a phenomenal actor, Duke is a complex character with several possible story directions ahead." Connie Passalacqua of Marlena De LaCroix said "I am stunned." She continued, "It is just so wrong!" Passalacqua hoped the producers would reconsider the decision.

References

External links

Category:General Hospital characters
Category:Television characters introduced in 1986
Category:Fictional mobsters
Category:Fictional Scottish people


D. Richard Hipp

Dwayne Richard Hipp (born April 9, 1961) is a software developer and the primary author of SQLite as well as the Fossil SCM. He also authored the Lemon parser generator, and CVSTrac, the latter became the inspiration for Trac. He was also a member of the Tcl core team.

Life and career
Hipp was born in Charlotte, North Carolina on April 9, 1961 but grew up in the suburbs of Atlanta, Georgia. He graduated from Stone Mountain High School in 1979 and enrolled at Georgia Tech. He graduated from Georgia Tech in 1984 with Master of Science in Electrical Engineering.

After graduating from Georgia Tech, Hipp worked at AT&T for three years before returning to graduate school at Duke University to study under Alan W. Biermann in the Department of Computer Science. He took the degree of Doctor of Philosophy from Duke in 1992 and finding the academic market for PhDs saturated with what he believed to be better qualified candidates, started his own software development consulting company. He designed SQLite in the spring of 2000 while working for General Dynamics on contract with the United States Navy.

He married Ginger G. Wyrick on April 16, 1994, changed the name of his company to Hipp, Wyrick & Company, Inc, and signed all stock over to Wyrick. He and his wife moved to their present home in Charlotte, North Carolina in August 1995.

References

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Category:1961 births
Category:Living people
Category:Free software programmers
Category:Georgia Tech alumni
Category:Duke University alumni
Category:People from Charlotte, North Carolina


DJ Pinocchio

"DJ Pinocchio" is a song by French virtual singer Pinocchio from his debut album Mon Alboum! (2005). Released as the fifth and last single from that album in June 2006, the song reached number 36 in France.

Track listing

Charts

References

Category:2005 songs
Category:2006 singles
Category:Pinocchio (singer) songs
Category:EMI Music France singles


Érik Boisse

Érik Boisse (born 13 March 1980, in Clichy) is a French épée fencer. He is the son of Philippe Boisse.

Boisse won the gold medal in the épée team event at the 2004 Summer Olympics and the 2006 World Fencing Championships after beating Spain in the final. He accomplished this with his teammates Ulrich Robeiri, Gauthier Grumier, and Fabrice Jeannet.

Achievements
 2006 World Fencing Championships, team épée

References

External links

Category:1980 births
Category:Living people
Category:French male fencers
Category:French épée fencers
Category:Fencers at the 2004 Summer Olympics
Category:Olympic fencers of France
Category:Olympic gold medalists for France
Category:Olympic medalists in fencing
Category:Medalists at the 2004 Summer Olympics
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2020 New York Riptide season

The New York Riptide are a lacrosse team based in Uniondale, New York playing in the National Lacrosse League (NLL). The 2020 season will be the team's 1st season in the league.

Regular season

Current standings

Game log

Roster

Entry Draft
The 2019 NLL Entry Draft took place on September 17, 2019. The Riptide made the following selections:

References

Category:New York Riptide
New York Riptide
New York Riptide


Tropodiaptomus neumanni

Tropodiaptomus neumanni is a species of calanoid copepod in the family Diaptomidae.

The IUCN conservation status of Tropodiaptomus neumanni is "VU", vulnerable. The species faces a high risk of endangerment in the medium term. The IUCN status was reviewed in 1996.

References

Category:Diaptomidae
Category:Articles created by Qbugbot
Category:Animals described in 1912


Gol Darreh, Ilam

Gol Darreh () is a village in Zardalan Rural District, Helilan District, Chardavol County, Ilam Province, Iran. At the 2006 census, its population was 85, in 12 families.

References

Category:Populated places in Chardavol County
Category:Chardavol County geography stubs


Flag of Otago

Otago is one of the few regions of New Zealand to have officially adopted a flag.

Otago has long been associated with several symbols and colours. The St. Andrew's Cross is one such symbol, in recognition of the former province's Scottish settlement. Another, used on the original arms of the province, is the eight-pointed star.

Traditionally, the province (as the region is still called) has always been associated with the colours blue and gold, these colours representing Otago's original foundation, on the wealth of gold taken from the rivers of the province during the 1860s gold rush. The blue also again harks back to the flag of Scotland.

For many years, these colours were seen in a wide variety of different designs intended to represent Otago. Popular designs included flags quartered in blue and gold, or in blue with a gold saltire. A vertically divided design in blue and gold with the word "Otago" in white fimbriated in black was also popular and can still be seen in use in the province.

In 2004, a campaign was started by prominent local author and regional councillor Neville Peat to decide on a design for a flag for the region as a whole (and more specifically for use by the Otago Regional Council).

The design (chosen in late 2004 from several hundred entries submitted) was designed by Gregor Macaulay. It is blazoned Per fess dancetty azure and or, two mullets of eight points in pale counterchanged. The design represents the blue skies over the hills of Otago separated by a zigzag dividing line, similar to that found on the flag of the province's main centre, Dunedin. The two eight-pointed stars were taken from the former Otago Provincial Council's seal, and also represent the sun shining over the lakes and the hills of Central Otago.

Flag
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Otago


Spica-class torpedo boat

The Spica class were a class of torpedo boats of the Regia Marina (Royal Italian Navy) during World War II. These ships were built as a result of a clause in the Washington Naval Treaty, which stated that ships with a tonnage of less than 600 could be built in unlimited numbers. Thirty-two ships were built between 1934 and 1937, thirty of which entered service with Italy and two which were sold to the Swedish Navy in 1940. The two units in Swedish service were classed as destroyers until 1953, then re-classified as corvettes. Although commonly referred to as torpedo boats due to their smaller displacement, the Spica class armaments were similar in design to destroyers (their design was influenced by the  then in development), and were intended for anti-submarine duties, although they often had to fight aircraft and surface forces as well. Twenty-three vessels were lost during World War II.

Design

The design work started in 1932 and two prototypes, Spica and Astore, were built. The hull was  long and displacement was around  standard rather than the  permitted by the Washington treaty. Propulsion consisted of a two shaft geared turbine layout with two Yarrow–type boilers. The armament consisted of three /47 caliber dual-purpose guns in single mountings in 'A', 'X' and 'Y' positions and three or four twin  anti-aircraft machine guns—later replaced by 9 to 11 Breda 20/65 modello 35 20 mm cannons in various configurations. They also carried four  torpedo tubes, two for each side, which had a shorter range and a smaller warhead than the  ones in use on destroyers.

Ships

Notes to table
  Bacini e Scali Napoletani, Naples
  Cantieri del Tirreno, Riva Trigoso
  Cantieri Navali Riuniti, Ancona
  Cantieri Navali del Quarnaro, Fiume
  Relettered LU in 1938

See also
 , an enlarged version of the class

References

Notes

Bibliography

External links

 History of the class  at italie1935-45.com
 Diving around the wreck of Aldebaran

Category:Torpedo boat classes

Category:World War II torpedo boats of Italy
Category:Ships built in Italy
Category:1930s ships


Comparative Cognition Society

The Comparative Cognition Society (CCS) is one of the primary scientific societies for the study of animal cognition and comparative psychology.  The CCS is a non-profit, international society dedicated to gaining a greater understanding of the nature and evolution of cognition in human and non-human animals.

Membership
Members of the CCS include university professors, postdoctoral fellows and graduate students.  Members come from many different disciplines including psychology, biology, anthropology and applied animal behaviour.

Membership to the society supports the annual International Conference on Comparative Cognition (CO3) in Melbourne, Florida. The CCS also organizes a Fall Meeting conference, coordinated with the annual meeting of the Psychonomic Society.

History
The society was formed in 1999 by 100 or so active researchers in the area of comparative cognition. The society's founding president (1999-2000) was Ron Weisman. Since its formation, CCS has been run by both new and founding members, elected as part of the executive board.

Meetings
One of the primary functions of the society is sponsorship of the annual Conference on Comparative Cognition (CO3). The first informal meeting of the conference was held in March, 1994 in Melbourne, Florida. With the founding of the CCS in 1999, CO3 became a formalized conference. Over the years, CO3 has included talks on over 100 species by scientists from over a dozen countries. CO3 brings together new and returning researchers from across the world who present talks and posters about their work.

Each year at CO3, an eminent researcher in the field is honoured with the CCS Research Award and asked to give a master lecture.  Past honourees include Sara Shettleworth, Alex Kacelnik, Alan Kamil, Thomas Zentall, Edward Wasserman, Karen Hollis and Ron Weisman.  A special paper session is held discussing the impact of the honouree on the scientific community each year, and an issue of the journal Behavioural Processes including articles related to the talks at the special session is published.

Beginning in 2008 CCS has sponsored a fall meeting in cooperation with the Psychonomic Society.  The fall meeting coincides with the annual meeting of the Psychonomic society.

On-Line Journal
CCS publishes the online journal, Comparative Cognition and Behavior Reviews. Comparative Cognition & Behavior Reviews is an open-access, peer-reviewed electronic journal of substantive reviews and constructive critiques in the area of animal cognition. The topics for these reviews and critiques include all aspects of research on cognition, perception, learning, memory and behavior in animals.

Current issue: Volume 12 (2017) - Co-editors: Marcia Spetch, Christopher Sturdy, & Anna Wilkinson.

E-Books
The CCS has also published two electronic books: Avian Visual Cognition and Animal Spatial Cognition: Comparative, Neural, and Computational Approaches.

Proceedings
Beginning with the ninth annual CO3 conference, the society has published the proceedings of the conference online.

External links
 CO3 Master lecture videos
 Official website

References

Category:Psychology organizations based in the United States
Category:Cognitive science organizations
Category:Professional associations based in the United States


Schlenker

Schlenker is a surname German origin and may refer to:

 Georg Schlenker German World War I fighter pilot
 Vincent Schlenker German hockey player


List of Sun Belt Conference champions

The Sun Belt Conference sponsors nine men's sports as well as nine women's sports. This is a list of conference champions for each sport.

Members

Current members
Appalachian State
Arkansas State
Coastal Carolina
Georgia Southern
Georgia State
Little Rock (non-football)
Louisiana
Louisiana–Monroe
South Alabama
Texas State
Troy
UT Arlington (non-football)

Affiliate members
 Hartwick – men's soccer, 2014–present
 Howard – men's soccer, 2014–present

Former full members
UAB, 1976–1991
UCF, 1991–1992
Denver, 1999–2012
FIU, 1998–2013
Florida Atlantic, 2005–2013
Jacksonville, 1978–1998
Lamar, 1991–1998
Louisiana Tech, 1991–2001
Middle Tennessee, 2000–2013
New Mexico State, 2000–2005
UNO, 1976–1980; 1991–2010
UNC-Charlotte, 1976–1991
North Texas, 2000–2013
Old Dominion, 1982–1991
USF, 1976–1991
UT-Pan American, 1991–1998
VCU, 1979–1991
Western Kentucky, 1982–2014

Former affiliate members
 Utah State – football, 2003–2005
 NJIT – men's soccer, 2014–2016
 Idaho – football, 2001–2005, 2014–2018
 New Mexico State – football, 2014–2018

Current champions

Football
Of the current 12 full Sun Belt members, 10 play football in the conference. Idaho and New Mexico State competed as single-sport members before being dropped from Sun Belt football after the 2017 season. Little Rock and UTA do not sponsor football.

Champions

| 2018
| Appalachian State

Golf

Champions

References

Category:Sun Belt Conference
Sun Belt Conference


Greek Senate (1829)

A new legislative body called the Senate () was created in 1829 by the Fourth National Assembly at Argos, replacing the prior advisory body called the Panellinion which had been founded by Governor Ioannis Kapodistrias the previous year.

History
The Senate had a total of 120 Senators. The Fourth National Assembly at Argos had decreed that 21 of them would be selected by the Governor out of a pool three times that number, selected by the Assembly, while the other 6 would be appointed directly by the Governor. The Senate's function was advisory on all non-administrative votes.

Elected to the office of President of the Senate was Georgios Sisinis.

When Kapodistrias was assassinated in 1831, the Senate transferred the Executive Powers to a three-person Administrative Committee on 20 December 1831, presided by Kapodistrias' brother Augustinos. The other members of the Committee were Theodoros Kolokotronis and Ioannis Kolettis. The Committee was dissolved in March 1832 after Augustinos left.

On 28 March 1832, a new 5 person Administrative Committee was created with Georgios Kountouriotis, Alexander Ypsilantis, Andreas Zaimis, Markos Botsaris, and Spyridon Trikoupis.

On 27 July 1832, the Fifth National Assembly at Nafplion dismisses the Senate however the Senate does not acknowledge this decision.

On 21 September 1832, the Senate appoints a new 3 person Administrative Committee to hold executive power.

Finally, in January 1833 the Senate was permanently dismissed with the arrival of King Otto.

With the enactment of the Greek Constitution of 1844, a new legislative body was created also with the name Senate.

Senators
Georgios Sisinis
Dimitris Plapoutas
Andreas Kalamogdartis
Andreas Miaoulis
Georgios Douzinas
Andreas Zaimis
Ioannis Peroukas
Tatsi Magginas
Georgios Antonopoulos
Georgios Mavrommatis

See also
Greek Senate

References

Category:1829 establishments in Greece
Greece
Category:Political institutions of the Greek War of Independence
Category:Defunct upper houses
Category:Greek Senate


T.C.C.P.

T.C.C.P is the debut release by the Minneapolis punk band The Soviettes.  It was released on Pop Riot Records, a Minneapolis label run by Max Peters.

It's the only release by the Soviettes featuring Lane Pederson, of the Dillinger Four, on drums instead of Danny Henry.  Razorcake magazine described the record as sweet, slashing and heavy and went onto say "The Soviettes stand out in a lineup against the waves of mediocre bands attempting the same".

Track listing

Side one

"Hot Sauced & Peppered" – 2:34
"In The Red" – 1:21

Side two

"Go Lambs Go!" – 1:58
"Sandbox" – 1:25

Personnel
Annie Holoien – guitar, vocals
Maren "Stugeon" Macosko – guitar, vocals
Susy Sharp – bass guitar, vocals
Lane Pederson – drums

References

External links

Lyrics.Wikia] - the band's lyrics

Category:2002 EPs
Category:The Soviettes albums


Al-Ma'Khadh

Al ma'khadh is a village in west-central Yemen. It is located in the San‘a’ Governorate.

External links
Towns and villages in the San‘a’ Governorate

Category:Villages in Sana'a Governorate


International Institute of Management Studies

International Institute of Management Studies or IIMS Pune is an MBA college located in Pune, Maharashtra. It is a co-educational institution.

History
The college was started in the year 2006 in a campus near Hinjewadi. The name of the college features in the list of top MBA colleges in Pune.

Courses
The college is approved by AICTE and offers Post Graduate Diploma in Management in the following specializations:
 Marketing
 Finance
 Human Resource
 Business Analytics
 Operations & Supply Chain Management

References

Category:Business schools in Maharashtra


WindTunnel with Dave Despain

WindTunnel with Dave Despain was a live viewer call-in show exclusively for auto racing fans that debuted on Speed Channel on February 22, 2003 and ended on August 11, 2013. During the course of the show, host Dave Despain fielded telephone calls and read e-mail from viewers, some of them directed at the guest Despain is interviewing, which was done just after the first segment, titled "Hot Topics", which Despain reads the big stories from the racing world. After the interview segment, Despain did a segment just for him, titled "My Take", in which he gave his opinion on news from the racing world. There was also an award for the best e-mail or phone call from each show, as the winning viewer received a Despain bobblehead. It was a coveted prize among viewers.

When WindTunnel debuted, the show aired Friday nights at 11 pm. The pilot episode was only a half-hour long. The time length was changed to an hour the very next week. In August 2003, WindTunnel expanded to four nights a week (Monday-Thursday) and moved to a 9 pm timeslot. In 2005, to the chagrin of some of the series' fans, WindTunnel was scaled back to one night a week, airing for two hours beginning at 9 pm on Sunday nights. In 2006, WindTunnel was scaled back to one hour. There have been special episodes of WindTunnel shown as part of the lead-up to the Daytona 500 and the Sprint All-Star Race.

The 2006 season brought about guest co-hosts in the form of racing personalities like drivers (such as Tony Stewart, Mario Andretti) and journalists (such as David Hobbs, Robin Miller, Ed Hinton, and Bob Varsha). In 2009, Despain began to take breaks during the season; guest hosts such as Krista Voda, Tommy Kendall, and Robin Miller have presented the show while Despain was off. Before this, only Ralph Sheheen in 2004 had replaced Despain for an episode due to illness.

The show would take a hiatus following the last NASCAR Sprint Cup race to late January during the racing off-season. During this time, best-of episodes titled WindTunnel: The Interviews were shown. Only the most popular interviews from the previous season were shown, which included interviews with NASCAR great Richard Petty, NASCAR star Jeff Gordon, and drag racing legend John Force. Starting in 2009 Golden Corral, an American restaurant chain, became the show's sponsor. Previous sponsors have been Carquest, an automobile parts store chain in 2007, and Alltel, a cell phone company in 2008.

Programming segments
Hot Topics-Highlights from the weekend's races and motorsports news.
Super 7 Sweep - An online fantasy racing game that awarded autographed Dave Despain Bobbleheads to each weekly winner plus season's end championship prizes.
Fired Up (2006-2012) – A short segment with callers (via voice mail) expressing heated opinions about topics regarding motorsports.
Eye Candy – A high energy musical video package including clips from that weekend's races.
My Take – A short editorial segment where Despain offers his opinion on a controversial topic in motorsports, usually offering a potentially simple solution to a complex problem.
Stat Rat (debuted July 15, 2007) - A reference of statistics regarding the performance of a team, driver, or manufacturer over a specific time period. While not a regular segment, it is used to highlight a guest's achievements.
Last Call – The last call from a viewer or a driver.  Last call is announced by a graphic of what is likely intended to be an Italian bartender, but fans call him the "pizza guy" saying he looks like a worker in a pizza restaurant and that his long sleeves would get wet if he were a bartender. Despain counters, "Why would a pizza guy be saying "last call!"?
WindTunnel EXTRA (2009–2012) – An extra 30-minute program that starts immediately after the television broadcast, available on Speed Channel web site. Despain often does a second "My Take" on a different subject. It is not unusual for a guest from the broadcast to remain for the webcast. Despain often answers questions from the live interactive chat that runs concurrent with the show.
Dave's Favorite E-Mail (2010–2012) – Dave reads and reacts to his favorite user-submitted e-mail of the week, usually of a comedic or satirical nature.
Help Yourself to Happiness – Sponsored by restaurant chain, Golden Corral. Dave highlights a particular moment or event of the previous week in which a racer "helps them-self to happiness."  Usually features a dramatic or meaningful overtaking maneuver.
Question of the Week - Sponsored by RACER Magazine, Dave asks viewers to respond via phone or e-mail to a particular question.  Usually relates to a "Hot Topic" or to a guest of the show.

References
 Program information from SPEEDtv.com
 TV.com information on WindTunnel with Dave Despain.

Category:2000s American television series
Category:2010s American television series
Category:2003 American television series debuts
Category:Automotive television series
Category:Speed (TV network) original programming
Category:2013 American television series endings


Austin A40 Somerset

See Austin A40 for other A40 models.

The Austin A40 Somerset is an automobile which was produced by the Austin Motor Company from 1952 until 1954. The Somerset replaced the Austin A40 Devon and, as a body-on-frame car, it was comparable in size to its predecessor. It shared a number of components with the Devon which included a similar 1.2 litre straight-4 pushrod engine.  The Somerset's engine was updated to produce 42 hp (31 kW), compared to the Devon's 40 hp (30 kW), giving the car a top speed of .

Engineering

The Somerset features an updated "Transatlantic" body style with flowing lines as distinct to the Devon's bulky looking body. Resembling the larger Austin A70 Hereford, its design was aimed at improving export sales, particularly to America. Initially offered as only a 4-door saloon, a 3-passenger 2-door convertible, of the same body style was introduced in late 1952. The convertible replaced the earlier Austin A40 Dorset.

The body of the convertible was made by Carbodies of Coventry and the model was marketed as the Austin A40 Somerset Coupé. This particular style was also known as a 'drophead' coupé in the United Kingdom. The convertible differed from the saloon in having separate front seats that folded forward to give access to the rear. An additional convertible, the Austin A40 Sports, was carried over from the earlier A40 Devon and Dorset range but was discontinued with the arrival of the Somerset Coupé.

In 1953 the Austin Motor Company produced a "special" version of around 500 Somerset saloons using the  more powerful engine from the 'sports' model which incorporated twin SU carburettors in place of the single Zenith downdraught type. This vehicle featured different interior appointments and two-tone paintwork to set it aside from the standard offering. The Austin Somerset Special had a top speed of  while the normal saloon could reach up to .

The standard Somerset interior contained two close fitting front seats, finished in leather, which could be arranged as a bench seat and a large deeply cushioned rear bench seat which could accommodate three passengers. With a centrally mounted dashboard or instrument panel, Austin incorporated a four speed, plus reverse, gearbox into the car's design which was controlled by a column mounted gear change lever. Four wheel, foot operated hydraulic brakes, and a handbrake operating on the rear wheels only, provided the car's stopping power.

Performance

A sports convertible version of the A40 tested by The Motor magazine in 1953 managed a top speed of  and could accelerate from 0- in 28.6 seconds. A fuel consumption of  was recorded.  These figures were all obtained on the contemporary low octane fuel. The test car cost £705 including taxes.

The Austin A40 Somerset saloon's reputation for being somewhat slow and lumbering to drive is not wholly deserved. It had to endure poor-quality petrol supplies in 1952, and in consequence had retarded ignition settings to tolerate the low octane rating of the fuels available to avoid the engine knocking or 'pinking' condition that was well known in those times. In fact British Motor Corporation later produced a kit to improve the performance and fuel consumption of these cars once premium fuel supplies resumed under the popular petrol brands. This kit comprised a replacement distributor and an optional cylinder head gasket that was thinner and therefore raised the compression slightly from the standard 7.2:1.

An Autocar magazine road test published 18 April 1952 achieved a maximum of  (mean) and  (best), and a 0-60 mph acceleration of 36.6 seconds whereas the example registered new in February 1954 and given a Used Car Test published in the Autocar series dated 8 April 1960 returned a 0-60 mph time of just 27.9 seconds. The standing quarter mile was down from 24.4 secs to 23.2 secs a marked improvement on the former result taken in 1952 and directly comparable with the Mini 850 launched in 1959, that was considered to be fairly brisk then.

Production

Over 173,000 Somersets were sold before it was replaced by the A40 Cambridge in 1954. 7,243 were convertibles.

In December 1952 an agreement was signed with the Japanese automobile company Datsun to build Austin vehicles under licence using Complete Knock Down Kits (CKD) supplied from the UK. In April 1953 the first Japanese assembled Somersets rolled off the assembly line ready for sale on the local market to which it was restricted. Assembly ceased in November 1954 when the factory switched to the A50 Cambridge.

References

External links
Austin Counties Car Club—Owners club website

A40 Somerset
Category:Cars introduced in 1952
Category:Sedans
Category:Convertibles
Category:Rear-wheel-drive vehicles

sv:Austin A40


Elek

For people with the given name, see Elek (given name).
For people with the surname, see Elek (surname).

Elek () is a town in Békés county, in the Southern Great Plain region of south-east Hungary.

Geography
It covers an area of 54.94 km² and had a population of 5,567 in 2002.

History
 1232 : First mentioned
 1566-1696 : Ottoman rule (Ottoman wars in Europe)
 1724 : settling of German colonists (predominantly from Franconia)
 1739 : Plague
 1894 : Artesian aquifer
 1920 : Elek becomes border town Treaty of Trianon
 1946 : Expulsion of German settlers
 1996 : ELEK Stadt

Twin towns
Elek is twinned with:
 Gerolzhofen, Germany (1990)
 Alerheim, Germany (1992)
 Leimen, Germany (1992)
 Sebiş (Borossebes), Romania (1992)
 Gerlingen, Germany
 Laudenbach, Germany (1994)
 Veľké Kapušany (Nagykapocs), Slovakia (1996)
 Grăniceri(Ottlaka), Romania (1997)
 Dumbrava(Igazfalva), Romania (2019)

References

External links

  in Hungarian

Category:Populated places in Békés County

tr:Elek


Löyöp language

Löyöp  (also known as Lehalurup) is a language spoken on the east coast of Ureparapara Island in the Banks Islands of Vanuatu. It is distinct from Lehali, the language spoken on the west coast of the same island.

Phonology
Löyöp has 11 phonemic vowels. These are ten short monophthongs , and one diphthong .

References

Bibliography
 .

External links
 Audio recordings in Löyöp language (from the Pangloss Collection of LACITO dept.)

Category:Banks–Torres languages
Category:Languages of Vanuatu


Royal Thai Police

The Royal Thai Police (RTP) (; ) is the national police force of Thailand. The RTP employs between 210,700 and 230,000 officers, roughly 17 percent of all civil servants (excluding the military and the employees of state-owned enterprises). The RTP is frequently recognized as the fourth armed force of Thailand since their tradition, concept, culture, skill, and training are relatively similar to the army and most of their officer cadets need to graduate from the Armed Forces Academies Preparatory School before entering the Police Academy. Officers also undergo paramilitary training similar to the army but with an additional focus on law enforcement.

About

Until the 19th century Royal Thai Armed Forces personnel, aside from their duties of national defence, also performed law enforcement duties alongside dedicated civil servants. Responsibility for law and order was divided into the six ministries led by chancellors of state (during the Ayutthaya and Thonburi eras); in time of war, police units were under royal command as part of the army. Only during the reigns of King Mongkut (Rama IV) and King Chulalongkorn (Rama V) did the nation see a huge reform and the Westernization of Thai law enforcement forces to adapt to the changing situation and needs of the country. By 1902, the Royal Police Cadet Academy (RCPA) was founded to train future police officers. In 1915 the provincial and urban police forces were united as one national organization under the Ministry of Interior (established 1894).

Primary responsibility for the maintenance of public order through enforcement of the kingdom's laws was exercised by the Thailand National Police Department (TNPD), a subdivision of the Interior Ministry. Charged with performing police functions throughout the entire country, the TNPD was a unitary agency whose power and influence in Thai national life had at times rivalled that of the armed forces itself.

The formal functions of the TNPD included more than the enforcement of laws and apprehension of offenders. The department also played an important role in the government's efforts to suppress the remnants of the communist insurgency. In the event of an invasion by external forces, much of the police force would come under the control of the Ministry of Defense to serve with, but not be incorporated into, the military forces.

Originally modelled on the pre–World War II national police force of Japan, the TNPD was reorganized several times to meet changing public order and internal security needs. American advice, training, and equipment, which were provided from 1951 through the early 1970s, did much to introduce new law enforcement concepts and practices and to aid in the modernization of the TNPD. During this era the strength and effectiveness of the police grew steadily.

All components of the police system were administered by the TNPD headquarters in Bangkok, which also provided technical support for law enforcement activities throughout the kingdom. The major operational units of the force were the Provincial Police, the Border Patrol Police (BPP), the Metropolitan Police, and smaller specialized units supervised by the Central Investigation Bureau.

In mid-1987 the total strength of the TNPD, including administrative and support personnel, was estimated at roughly 110,000. Of this number, over one-half were assigned to the Provincial Police and some 40,000 to the BPP. More than 10,000 served in the Metropolitan Police. Quasi-military in character, the TNPD was headed by a director general, who held the rank of police general. He was assisted by three deputy directors general and five assistant directors general, all of whom held the rank of police lieutenant general. Throughout the TNPD system, all ranks except the lowest (constable) corresponded to those of the army. The proliferation of high ranks in the TNPD organizational structure, as in the military, indicated the political impact of the police on national life.

In 1998, TNPD was transferred from the Ministry of Interior of Thailand to be directly under the Office of the Prime Minister. It acquired a new name, in English, the "Royal Thai Police" (RTP). The title of its commander was changed from "Director-General of the TNPD" to "Commissioner-General of the Royal Thai Police".

Personnel
Thailand's police forces number about 230,000 officers. About eight percent (18,400) are female. In the Philippines the percentage of female police officers is 20 percent, 18 percent in Malaysia, and 30 percent, the world's highest percentage of women, in Sweden. Of 8,000 investigators with the RTP, 400 are women.

Females were first admitted to the Royal Police Cadet Academy (RPCA), founded in 1901, in 2009. It has since graduated about 700 female officers. Starting with the class to be admitted for the 2019 academic year, the 280 places formerly reserved for females will be scrapped. Earlier in 2018, the RTP prohibited women from "inquiry official" roles. The rationale given was that women are hindered by domestic responsibilities, therefore less effective than male officers. Women will still be able to become police officers via other avenues. For example, women with law degrees will continue to be recruited.

National police chief Chakthip Chaijinda attributed the barring of women from the RPCA to a new Ministry of Defence ruling that all RPCA cadets must undergo an initial period of training at the male-only Armed Forces Academies Preparatory School (AFAPS). Critics say the new policy violates the 2015 Gender Equality Act, the constitution, Thailand's 20 year national strategy, as well as international conventions that prohibit gender discrimination.

RTP organization

The Thai police are subdivided into several regions and services, each wielding their own powers.

Royal Thai Police headquarters
Commissioner-General of the Royal Thai Police

Ratchawallop Police Retainers, King's Guards 904
In October 2018, a new police unit, whose job it is to protect the monarchy, the "Special Service Division", was formed. The 1,600 man unit is to provide security to the royal family and to collect information on "individuals or groups whose behaviors pose a threat to the national security and His Majesty the King." The unit is also charged with carrying out the king's "royal wishes". On 28 January 2019, the unit's name was changed to "Ratchawallop Police Retainers, King's Guard 904". Its jurisdiction will extend to the entire country.

Border Patrol Police division

A 40,000 person paramilitary force. The BPP and the PARU were largely creations of the US CIA. In the late-1950s and 1960s, "The BPP and PARU were integral in U.S. and Thai counterinsurgency efforts." The BPP, other than protecting the borders, countered "infiltration and subversion..."
and operated "as guerrilla forces in enemy held areas" such as northeast and southern Thailand. The PARU was a small unit used on clandestine missions outside Thailand.
 BPP General Staff Division
 BPP Tactical Training Division
 BPP Support Division
 BPP Nawutti Somdejya Hospital
 BPP Village Scouts Center
 BPP Counter-Insurgency Training Center
 BPP Districts 1 through 4
 Police Aerial Reinforcement Unit (PARU)
 Airborne Training
 Naresuan 261 Counter-Terrorism Unit (formerly the 4th Company PARU)
 Sea Air Rescue Unit

Central Investigation Bureau
The national coordinating headquarters has jurisdiction over the entire country. The CIB was organized to assist both provincial and metropolitan components of the Royal Thai Police in preventing and suppressing criminal activity and in minimizing threats to national security.
 Specialized units of the bureau, including the railroad, marine, highway, technology police, economic police and forestry police, who employ up-to-date technical equipment, law enforcement techniques, and training.
 Five other divisions and offices employed modern procedures to assist in investigating and preventing crime.
 The Crime Suppression Division (CSD) (;  ), one of the bureau's largest components, is responsible for conducting most of the technical investigations of criminal offenses throughout the kingdom. Its emergency unit copes with riots and other public disorders, sabotage, counterfeiting, fraud, illegal gambling operations, narcotics trafficking, and the activities of secret societies, and organized criminal associations. It is responsible for cases involving politics, notably elections.
 Special Branch Bureau is a Special Branch — sometimes referred to by critics as the "political police", is responsible for controlling subversive activities and serves as the Thai Police's major intelligence organization, as well as the unit responsible for VIP protection.
 The Criminal Records Office collects and maintains records required in the conduct of police work, including dossiers and fingerprints of known criminals and persons suspected of wrongdoing.
 The Scientific Crime Detection Laboratory, where technicians perform the requisite chemical and physical analyses.
 Licenses Division: registered and licensed firearms, vehicles, gambling establishments, and various other items and enterprises as required by law.

Narcotics Suppression Bureau

Narcotics Suppression Bureau is the lead agency for counter narcotics investigations in Thailand.

Office of Logistics

Thai Police Aviation division

The RTP operates three fixed wing and 72 rotary-wing aircraft:
 1 Dassault Falcon 2000S
 1 Fokker 50
 2 Casa CN - 235 - 200 M
 2 Airbus Helicopters H175
 5 Eurocopter EC155B-1 Helicopters
 2 Eurocopter AS365N3+ Dauphin Helicopters
 9 Bell 412 Helicopters
 15 Bell 212 Helicopters
 26 Bell 205 Helicopters
 16 Bell 206 Helicopters
 6 Bell 429 Helicopters

Provincial Police division

The Provincial Police form the largest of the Royal Thai Police operational components in both personnel and geographic responsibility. It is headed by a commander who reported to the police commissioner-general, and administered through four police regions—geographic areas of responsibility similar to those of the army regional commands. This force provides police services to every town and village throughout the kingdom except metropolitan Bangkok and border areas. The Provincial Police thus handled law enforcement activities and in many cases was the principal representative of the central government's authority in much of the country.

During the 1960s and early-1970s, as the police assumed an increasing role in counterinsurgency operations, a lack of coordination among security forces operating in the rural areas became apparent. Observers noted that the overall police effort suffered because of conflicting organizational patterns and the highly centralized control system that required decisions on most matters to emanate from the various police bureaus of the (then) TNPD headquarters in Bangkok.

A reorganization of the TNPD in 1978 and 1979 gave more command authority to the four police lieutenant generals who served as regional commissioners of the Provincial Police. Thereafter, the senior officers of each region not only controlled all provincial police assigned to their respective geographic areas but also directed the railroad, highway, marine, and forestry police units operating there, without going through the chain of command to the Central Investigation Bureau in Bangkok. Although this change increased the workload of the regional headquarters, it resulted in greater efficiency and improved law enforcement.

The Provincial Police Division is divided into 10 regions covering the 76 Provinces of Thailand except metropolitan Bangkok and the border areas:
 Region 1 - Ayuthaya
 Region 2 - Chonburi
 Region 3 - Nakhon Ratchasima
 Region 4 - Khon Kaen
 Region 5 - Chiang Mai
 Region 6 - Phitsanulok
 Region 7 - Nakhon Pathom
 Region 8 - Surat Thani
 Region 9 - Songkhla

 Chaiya Training
 Special Operations Units

Police education bureau

The RTP Police Education Bureau is responsible for training police personnel in the latest methods of law enforcement and the use of modern weapons. It operates the Royal Police Cadet Academy in Sam Phran District, Nakhon Pathom Province, for the officer corps, the detective training school at Bang Kaen, the Metropolitan Police Training School at Bang Kaen, and the Provincial Police training centers at Nakhon Pathom, Lampang, Nakhon Ratchasima, and Yala. The bureau also supervises a number of sites established and staffed by the BPP to train its field platoons in counterinsurgency operations. These sites include a large national facility near Hua Hin and smaller facilities in Udon Thani, Ubon Ratchathani, Chiang Mai, and Songkhla.

Tourist Police Bureau

Tourist police are uniformed personnel who lack police powers and are largely responsible for writing out reports for insurance companies for victims of theft. In more serious cases, they will translate reports to be passed on to the regular police in Bangkok.

According to Reuters correspondent, Andrew Marshall, "The country has a special force of Tourist Police, set up specifically so that foreigners have as little contact as possible with the ordinary police—the effect on the crucial tourism industry would be chilling."

According to one source, in 2017 there were 1,700 enlisted tourist police on the force.  the agency has 2,000 officers and 70 tourist police cars for use nationwide.

Immigration Bureau
The Immigration Bureau is responsible for issuing travel visas and managing entry and departure in Thailand. The Immigration Police are a frequent target of criticism from expatriates who decry slow service, inconsistent application of regulations, and excessive filing of paper forms. Referring to just one of scores of immigration forms, the TM6 Arrival-Departure Card, Kobsak Pootrakool, deputy secretary-general to the prime minister, admitted that, "The immigration police have to have a huge warehouse to store these papers," Kobsak said, adding that the police rarely look at the information in the forms, which are only stored "just in case". The government expects a 20 million visitors to Thailand this year, each required to complete a TM6 form. The form will be replaced by mobile phone app in 2019.

Metropolitan Police Bureau

Responsible for providing all law enforcement services for the capital city of Bangkok and its suburbs, the Metropolitan Police Bureau is probably the most visible and publicly recognizable of all Thai police components. This largely uniformed urban force operates under the command of a chief who holds the rank of police lieutenant general assisted by six deputy chiefs. Organizationally, the force consists of three divisions, each responsible for police services in one of the three urban areas: northern Bangkok, southern Bangkok, and Thonburi. , there are 88 police stations across the capital, each with 30-200 police officers attached to it. In addition to covering the city with foot patrols, the Metropolitan Police maintains motorized units, a canine corps, building guards, traffic-control specialists, and law enforcement personnel trained to deal with juveniles. The Traffic Police Division also provides escorts and guards of honor for the king and visiting dignitaries and served as a riot-control force to prevent demonstrations and to disperse unruly crowds in Bangkok.

Patrol and Special operation Division (191 Special Branch police)
 Arintharat 26 Special Operations Unit

Traffic Police Division
The Traffic Police Division (TPD) got its start in 1927 as the "Registration Division". TPD officers now are responsible for patrolling the roads throughout their areas of responsibility. In addition to their general road policing duties, they work to improve road safety, and deal with vehicle crimes and the criminal use of the road network. They back up other units as they are constantly roaming as part of their patrolling duties.

Thai military deputized as police
On 29 March 2016, in a move that the Bangkok Post said will "...will inflict serious and long-term damage...", the NCPO, under a Section 44 order (NCPO Order 13/2559) signed by junta chief Prayut Chan-o-cha, granted to commissioned officers of the Royal Thai Armed Forces broad police powers to suppress and arrest anyone they suspect of criminal activity without a warrant and detain them secretly at almost any location without charge for up to seven days. Bank accounts can be frozen, and documents and property can be seized. Travel can be banned. Automatic immunity for military personnel has been built into the order, and there is no independent oversight or recourse in the event of abuse. The order came into immediate effect. The net result is that the military will have more power than the police and less oversight.

The government has stated that the purpose of this order is to enable military officers to render their assistance in an effort to "...suppress organized crimes such as extortion, human trafficking, child and labor abuses, gambling, prostitution, illegal tour guide services, price collusion, and firearms. It neither aims to stifle nor intimidate dissenting voices. Defendants in such cases will go through normal judicial process, with police as the main investigator...trial[s] will be conducted in civilian courts, not military ones. Moreover, this order does not deprive the right of the defendants to file complaints against military officers who have abused their power."

The NCPO said that the reason for its latest order is that there are simply not enough police, in spite of the fact that there are about 230,000 officers in the Royal Thai Police force. They make up about 17 percent of all non-military public servants. This amounts to 344 cops for every 100,000 persons in Thailand, more than twice the ratio in Myanmar and the Philippines, one and a half times that of Japan and Indonesia, and roughly the same proportion as the United States.

In a joint statement released on 5 April 2016, six groups, including Human Rights Watch (HRW), Amnesty International, and the International Commission of Jurists (ICJ), condemned the move.

Transportation
, the RTP has a fleet of some 71 aircraft including a six passenger, 1.14 billion baht (US$37 million) police jet, a Dassault Falcon 2000S.

The Royal Thai Police, especially the provincial forces, extensively uses pickup trucks and SUVs. For traffic regulation and patrolling in cities, sedans and motorcycles are also used. Highway police vehicles generally also have equipment like speed radars, breath analyzers, and emergency first aid kits. They also use tuk-tuks, minivans, bicycles, all-terrain vehicles, boats, and helicopters.

Royal Thai Police vehicle colors vary widely according to grade, region, and kind of duty performed. Bangkok metropolitan police vehicles are black and white. Provincial police vehicles are maroon and white while highway police are maroon and yellow.

Firearms
There are no standard-issue pistols carried by the Royal Thai Police. Policemen must buy their own pistol and he/she must buy what's available in Thailand and what he/she can afford. If the police officer can't afford a pistol, he may purchase one by paying in installments through their police co-operative.

One of the most popular police pistols is the M1911A1 .45 ACP pistol which can be found readily and relatively cheaply in Thailand. The 9mm Glock 19 Parabellum is another popular, albeit more expensive, choice.

In mid-2015, Pol Gen Somyot Phumphanmuang, Royal Thai Police Commissioner, initiated a program to allow officers to purchase United States-made, 9mm SIG Sauer P320 pistols for 18,000 baht each. The Thai market price for this gun is several times higher. The affordable price is made possible by a special police exemption from import quotas and import duties. In December 2017, 150,000 SIG Sauer P320SP pistols became available for purchase by police for 23,890 baht each. The RTP will, in addition, distribute 55,000 of the new pistols to police stations nationwide, each station receiving 60.

Though the Thai police does not issue pistols, long-guns are made available by the government. Common are the Heckler & Koch MP5 and FN P90 sub-machine guns, Remington 870 shotguns, the M4 carbine, and M16 rifles.

Uniforms
Royal Thai Police uniforms vary widely according to rank, region, and kind of duty performed. Among the police, uniforms tend to resemble army dress rather than conventional police uniforms.

Considered part of the police "uniform", all male officers are required to shave the sides and back of their heads, leaving a short crop of hair on the top, hence its common name, (; ), or 'three white sides'. The models for the haircut are the royal guards who protect King Vajiralongkorn. They are known for their short haircuts, required by the monarch. "It's a royal practice," a retired police general said. "...we are all serving His Majesty the King...It looks beautiful...It doesn't hurt anyone."

Rank structure

Officers

Non-commissioned officers

Notable Thai police chiefs
 Phao Sriyanond (also "Pao Sriyanond") was Director General of Thailand's national police from 1951 to 1957.
 Sarit Thanarat was Director General of Thailand's national police from 1959 to 1963.
 Praphas Charusathien was Director General of Thailand's national police from 1963 to 1973.
 Pao Sarasin was Director General of Thailand's national police from 1987 to 1989.
 Pratin Santiprapop was Director General of the Royal Thai Police from 1994 to 1994.
 Poj Boonyajinda was Director General of the Royal Thai Police from 1994 to 1997.
 Pracha Promnok was Director General of the Royal Thai Police from 1997 to 1998 and Commissioner-General of the Royal Thai Police from 1998 to 2000.
 Pornsak Durongkavibulya was Commissioner-General of the Royal Thai Police from 2000 to 2001.
 Sant Prabhawat was Commissioner-General of the Royal Thai Police from 2001 to 2004.
 Kowit Wattana was Commissioner-General of the Royal Thai Police from 2004 to 2007 and was reinstated as Commissioner-General of the Royal Thai Police from September 10, 2007 to September 30, 2007 (his mandatory retirement).
 Seripisut Temiyavet was Commissioner-General of the Royal Thai Police starting from October 1, 2007 to April 2008. Appointed Police Commissioner of Thailand by a military junta government. As a police officer he gained a reputation for targeting mafia leaders. He was removed from office in April 2008 by the elected government of Samak Sundaravej under charges of corruption. His supporters, however, claim that these charges are put-up jobs to punish him for prosecuting many cases against the militarily deposed former premier Thaksin Shinawatra.
 Somyot Poompanmoung  was Commissioner-General of the Royal Thai Police from 2014 to 2015.
 Chakthip Chaijinda was Commissioner-General of the Royal Thai Police from 2015 to 2020.

Police corruption
On the occasion of the festivities surrounding its 12th anniversary, the Office of the Ombudsman, Thailand reported on its activities since its inception. Chief Ombudsman Panit Nitithanprapas noted that her office had handled nearly 25,000 cases during the period and observed that the Royal Thai Police had been found to be "the most corrupt agency in Thailand". Curiously, Ms Panit's photo does not appear among those of other former ombudsmen on the organisation's website, nor is there any other mention of her.

In the words of Jomdet Trimek, a former police officer, now an academician, "In-depth studies of the causes of...corruption tend to be avoided." Jomdet attributes police corruption to two factors: a centralized police bureaucracy which gives too much power to a few; and very low police salaries. He divides police corruption into three main forms: embezzlement of government funds, coercing bribes from the public, and collection of protection money from illegal business operators and gives examples of each. At the level of constable, this petty thievery is driven by low wages: entry level salaries for police with no university education was 6,800 baht (2012). In June 2015, the Bangkok Post reported that, "Thai police officers are paid around 14,760 baht per month (6,800–8,340 baht for entry level) and have to buy their own guns and even office supplies." He posits that one reason salaries are so low is that the sheer number of officers is staggering, roughly 250,000. This means that an increase of 5,000 baht in every cop's monthly salary would cost the government a politically untenable 15 billion baht annually.

Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha appointed no-nonsense Police-General Somyot Poompanmoung head of the RTP following the coup of May 2014. Somyot, whose declared assets exceed US$11.5 million, has vowed to transfer, arrest, or prosecute all corrupt officers. But, according to Chuwit Kamolvisit, a former massage parlour magnate turned legislator, "police reform" is a never-ending mantra which never produces results. The "cash-for-jobs" culture within the police is too deep to uproot, he says, alleging that low-ranking officers earning just US$460 a month tap the public for bribes, or solicit protection money from dodgy businesses to top up their salaries and buy promotions. "Rank and status is everything in Thailand... when you are a small policeman to go up [sic], you need to have the right boss, and preferably one at a 'golden police station'– near a casino or entertainment venue", he explained.

In a 2008 article, The Economist summed up their assessment succinctly: "In Thailand's most sensational crimes, the prime suspects are often the police."

In August 2015, a post was made on the Sakon Nakhon Police Facebook page, allegedly from a junior officer. Among other observations the post asked, "...Are our meagre salaries enough to support our families? The answer is no. We have to borrow money and get trapped in debt. "So what about the phuyai [bigwigs]? Are they in debt too? Definitely not. They are rich. Why? Because at the end of every month, money from gambling dens, entertainment venues, the sex trade, human trafficking, drugs and whatnot are routinely sent to them." The post was immediately deleted. Then the Facebook page was deleted altogether. The supervisor of the junior policeman in charge of the page said it was all a technical mistake. Someone had hacked into the page to write the message to taint the image of the police force.

In the view of Rangsit University's Associate Professor Police Lieutenant Colonel Krisanaphong Poothakool, "We hear that police reform is ongoing, but in practice, nothing is happening". He added that the country has had a couple of police reform committees, which did not amount to much when their recommendations were ignored.

Thai police in action
 More than 50 vendors in Ko Samui protested at their local police station on 2 April 2015 to protest rampant bribery among island police officers. The rally was sparked by the arrest of a 42-year-old woman who sold counterfeit purses near Chaweng Beach. According to her, police arrested her employee several hours after they demanded 50,000 baht to overlook the store's violation of trademark laws. The owner, Patcharee Chimthaprasert, 49, said she initially agreed to pay the bribe, but that officers later raised the price to 190,000 baht, which she was unable to afford. Four officers returned several hours later and arrested her employee, Nampueng Moongraiklang, and confiscated 28 bags as evidence, she said. After news of the arrest spread, around 50 vendors from 20 shops near Chaweng beach closed down their stores and staged a rally in front of Bo Phut Police Station. The group filed a complaint that the four police officers extorted bribes from Nampueng and other vendors in the area.
 In 2009, the Thai Police and justice system on the holiday island of Phuket were accused of corruption and over-reaction by tourists visiting the island. In one case an Australian woman was arrested and accused of stealing a bar mat. She spent four nights in jail and had her passport confiscated. Then she faced a wait of another 14 weeks on bail until the next phase of her prosecution. This was despite friends of hers confessing to the police that they had placed the bar mat in the woman's bag as a joke. Eventually the case was resolved after the intervention of the governor of Phuket, Wichai Praisa-nob, after being contacted by Thailand's Ministry of Tourism and the Foreign Ministry. A deal was done under which she would plead guilty, be fined, and then governor Wichai Praisa-nob would pay the fine and give an apology. After this her passport was returned and she was allowed to return to Australia.
 In another case an American couple was arrested upon returning to Thailand and accused of being responsible for burning down a house in which they resided on a previous stay in Phuket. The fire had previously been investigated and found to have been caused by an electrical fault. In order to recover their passports and be allowed to depart Thailand, they had to compensate the house owner and make under the table payments to the judges, the public prosecutor, and everyone down to the bailiffs in the court. This cost them around 45,000 US dollars.
 In 2007 a 15-year-old Danish boy was involved in an insurance fraud when a Chinese couple threw themselves under his Jetboat killing one of them. While the court ruled the incident as an accident, the police detained the boy and held his passport until an amount of DKK300,000 had been paid so the case could be settled within weeks.
 As a condition of being appointed to the National Legislative Council (NLC), prospective members were required to reveal their assets and liabilities. The disclosures by would-be NLC members of their assets shocked many Thais. "Police Chief Somyos Poompanmuang and his wife's net worth was revealed to about 355.8 million baht (roughly $11 million) [sic], raising questions about how a lifelong career in the public service could have made him a millionaire many times over."
 It has been alleged that Thai police profit greatly from "enforcing" music copyright infringement laws. Bars and restaurants in Thailand that play recorded music are required to obtain a licence from a local copyright agency. This is supposed to protect the interests of international artists and record companies. Thailand has more music licensing companies than any other country in the world, making it confusing for business operators to figure out whom to go to if they want to obtain a licence. In cases where fees have not been paid, licensing companies work with the police to collect royalties and sometimes a bit more.
 The discovery in early-May 2015 of two dozen bodies from shallow graves in the mountains of southern Thailand, a discovery that has exposed a network of jungle camps run by traffickers who allegedly held migrants captive while they extorted ransoms from their families, has seemingly galvanized Thailand into action. A total of 33 bodies, believed to be migrants from Myanmar and Bangladesh, have now been exhumed from various jungle camps. The discoveries have embarrassed Thailand, which is already under pressure from the United States and the European Union to crack down on human trafficking both on land and in its fishing fleets. Thai Police chief Gen. Somyot Poompanmoung has moved quickly, arresting the mayor of the district town and relieving 50 police officers of their duties. "If you are...neglecting, or involved with, or supporting or benefiting from human-trafficking networks — your heads will roll," Somyot said.
 Bangkok police chief, Police Lt Gen Sriwarah Rangsipramkul, off-duty, in civilian clothes, and driving a private vehicle, was stopped by police at a drunk driving checkpoint in Bangkok in July 2015. He was asked to take a breathalyzer test. "I rolled down my window and told them I hadn't drunk any alcohol, but the [police] volunteers said, 'you have to take the breathalyzer test,'" Sriwarah recounted. "I told them no five times, but the volunteers wouldn't give in." This enraged the police chief who observed that, "If those volunteers were quality people, and had some wits, they would have realized that I didn't smell of any alcohol. Eventually, I had to tell them who I was and get out of my car and criticize them." Sriwarah said he later encountered a second checkpoint in front of the Criminal Court where a second group of police volunteers again insisted he take a breathalyzer test. He said the incident prompted him to order police officers "to only select quality volunteers for traffic works, so that the people won't be affected."  In Thailand, refusing to take breathalyzer test carries a maximum penalty of one year imprisonment. The day following the incidents, Pol Maj Gen Thanapon Techatanon, a senior officer at Traffic Police Division, said he has ordered all traffic officers to familiarize themselves with their superiors to avoid similar incidents in the future. "I have instructed all volunteers and police officers to memorize faces, names, and license plates of their commanders well, so that this mistake will not happen again," Thanapon said.
 In response to the Erawan Shrine bombing on 17 August 2015 which killed 20 and wounded 125 persons, the Thai police on 21 August, initiated "Operation Lock Down the City, Raid the Bandits' Nests," with the objective of "X-raying" potential residences that might hold clues leading to the bomber and his network. On Sunday 23 August, the police held a parade and formal ceremony inaugurating the operation that had begun on 21 August and was due to end the next day. A parade of soldiers and police, complete with mounted cavalry and motorized convoys, marched out of Royal Plaza in the Dusit district. Police reports of the operation claimed a total of 139 people were arrested, three detained, and 4,615 properties searched by the time the operation ended Monday. The majority of suspects were charged with unrelated drug offenses, with a small number taken into custody on weapons charges. Police reports did not indicate how many of those arrested were foreigners. Another three people were arrested for using social media to "spread panic" in connection to the deadly bombing. The operation failed to net any suspects related to the bomb attack.

Following the arrest of one suspect in the bombing, the national police chief, Somyot Poompanmoung, said that he would award the three million baht reward (US$84,000) for tips leading to the arrest of bombing suspects to the Royal Thai Police. "This money should be given to officials who did their job," he said at a news conference as aides brought out stacks of 1,000 baht notes. How the money would be distributed to the police was not made clear. Also unclear was whether the landlady who owned the apartment where the suspect was captured and phoned in her suspicions will receive any money. At a press conference on 28 September 2015 Somyot announced that the police consider the Erewan bombing case solved:  the bomb attack was revenge by a gang that was smuggling ethnic Uighurs out of China and had been damaged by a police crackdown. Somyot took the occasion to award police working the case a second tranche of reward money donated by private citizens and was photographed with bundles of 1,000 baht notes.

The Thai national police chief, Pol Gen Somyot Poompanmuang, at a meeting with 259 immigration police officers at the National Police Office on 7 September 2015, accused the Immigration Bureau of taking millions of baht in bribes daily. The Immigration Bureau falls under the aegis of the RTP. The meeting followed the news last week that a key suspect in the bombing at Erawan Shrine in Bangkok was able to bribe his way past Thai Immigration officials at a border crossing from Thailand to Cambodia and was only arrested when Cambodian officials stopped him. General Somyot, who is retiring at the end of the month, is reported to have said that Immigration officials at Bangkok's two major airports took bribes amounting to at least 1.8 million baht a day. The immigration bureau police commander, Pol Lt-Gen Sakda Choenpakdee, was warned by the national police chief that he would be removed from his post if he fails to rein in unlawful activities.
 Police Lt Col Prakarn Korpsiripat was fired from the RTP and charged with assault after he punched a cashier at a restaurant in Korat where he had been demanding free meals. At the Sor Sunthorn Restaurant on 31 August 2015, Prakarn attacked the cashier who had reported Prakarn's refusal to pay bills totaling 1,400 baht on 29 and 30 August. "Do you know who I am? Why did you report me to my boss? I got reprimanded because of you", restaurant owner Pongpat Bamrungkul described Prakarn as saying to the cashier. The cashier's nose was broken in the assault. "Prakarn's swift sacking was a departure from the usual punishment—transfer to an inactive post—handed down to police officers and other officials implicated in wrongdoing in Thailand." said one news report.
 Laura Witheridge, sister of one of the Ko Tao murder victims, Hannah Witheridge, murdered on Ko Tao, posted a message on her Facebook profile saying that the Thai police are corrupt and that their investigation leading to the conviction of the two Burmese migrants was "bungled". After the message was posted, Pol Gen Chakthip Chaijinda, the Royal Thai Police Chief, threatened to file lawsuits against Laura for defaming the Thai police.
 Police arrested a British tourist in Chiang Mai on the first day of the 2016 Songkran holiday, 13 April, for violating the junta's ban on indecent dress. In a water fight the culprit was topless, wearing only short pants, but no shirt. He was taken into custody, fined 100 baht, then released. Temperatures in Chiang Mai reached 41 °C that day.
 Police captain 1 gave 700,000 baht to his colleague, police captain 2, in order for captain 2 to exercise his influence with a high-ranking police official who could assure captain 1 of a promotion to inspector. When no promotion was forthcoming, captain 1 filed a complaint. When questioned, captain 2 admitted lying to his colleague. He denied knowing any high-ranking police officer with influence. Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha ordered the Royal Thai Police to take action against two officers involved in the scandal.
 The owner of a karaoke bar in the Bang Lamung District of Chonburi Province, filed a complaint with Muang Pattaya police accusing six policemen of illegally detaining her and her employees, attempting to extort money from her and misconduct causing damage to others. The six cops allegedly enticed a server into accepting 2,000 baht for saying she was selling sex to him. The owner and the server were then handcuffed and placed in a police van. Inside the van, the police allegedly asked for a bribe of 30,000 baht in exchange for their freedom. Unfortunately for the cops, the owner telephoned a close relative who knew the national police chief, Chakthip Chaijinda, to seek help. The six officers have been charged with false imprisonment, malfeasance causing injury, and attempted extortion.
 Five senior police officers at the Lat Krabang police station in Bangkok were transferred to inactive posts after soldiers rounded them up in a major gambling den in the district on 18 November 2016. The five arrested included a colonel and four lieutenant colonels. They were the Lat Krabang police superintendent; the deputy superintendent for crime suppression; the deputy superintendent for investigation; the station investigation chief; and the station crime suppression chief.
 In November 2016 Police Lance Corporal Withoon Phetpankan and two accomplices were arrested for stealing five million baht at gunpoint from bank employees reloading an ATM with cash. Under interrogation Withoon confessed to the crime.
 When the National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC) revealed the asset declarations of new NLA members, it was disclosed that Bangkok police chief Pol Lt Gen Sanit Mahathavorn has received monthly payments of 50,000 baht from alcohol conglomerate Thai Beverage PLC as an adviser to the firm since 2015. Sanit also serves as a member of the city's alcohol control committee, raising conflict of interest issues. Calls for him to step down from his police post were immediate. In January 2017 a Royal Thai Police investigation confirmed that Sanit is not violating police rules by holding an advisory role with a major alcohol conglomerate.
 Thailand's Anti-Money Laundering Office (AMLO) seized assets worth 100 million baht from the ex-police chief of Loei Province and his accomplices. The former police major general allegedly embezzled 229 million baht from 192 police officers he commanded. He is accused of inducing his officers to invest in a "Ponzi-like scheme" and "misappropriating" the money.

See also
 Border Patrol Police
Naresuan 261 Counter-Terrorism Unit
 Corruption in Thailand
 Crime in Thailand
 March of Public Peace Preservation
 Controversy over Police Conduct in Pai

References

Further reading

.

External links

Official Royal Thai Police website
English Information on the Royal Thai Police
Catalogue of Torture and Corruption by The Royal Thai Police

Category:Law enforcement in Thailand
Category:National Central Bureaus of Interpol
Category:Government agencies established in 1933
Category:1933 establishments in Siam
Category:Government departments of Thailand


Scott Tracy

Scott Tracy is a fictional character in Gerry Anderson's 1960s Supermarionation television series Thunderbirds, the subsequent films Thunderbirds Are Go and Thunderbird 6 and the TV remake Thunderbirds Are Go!. He is the pilot of the primary vehicle of the Thunderbird fleet, Thunderbird 1. His specialist training is as a First Responder and Team Leader.

Thunderbirds 1965–66

Character biography
The eldest son of Jeff Tracy (founder and financier of International Rescue), Scott is named after American astronaut Scott Carpenter. Sources vary in the canon of the Thunderbirds series as to Scott's age and birth date. One written source suggests that Scott was born on 4 April 2039, making him 26 years old.

Educated at Yale and Oxford Universities, Scott was decorated for valour during his service with the United States Air Force before taking up his duties with International Rescue. As pilot of the quick response craft Thunderbird 1, he is usually first at the danger zone and typically serves as field commander on all rescue operations. He also takes on secondary duties as co-pilot of the spacecraft Thunderbird 3, is an occasional relief occupant of the Thunderbird 5 space station, and leads the organisation from Tracy Island when his father is absent.

Of the five Tracy brothers, it is Scott who keeps a cool head, and who is quick-thinking when the situation calls for it – particularly when he is at the receiving end of a gun or when the security of International Rescue is compromised. As the eldest brother, Scott nearly always assumes a leadership role.

Scott Tracy is also one of the few members of International Rescue to have killed someone. He killed the Egyptians in the pyramid on "The Uninvited" (he also probably killed Gomez and Gillespie in "Move – And You're Dead"). The others are Gordon on "Operation Crash Dive" and Alan on Thunderbird 6.

Background
Scott's likeness was based on actor Sean Connery.

Along with Jeff and Virgil, Scott is the only other Tracy to appear in all 32 episodes of Thunderbirds, although he does not take part in the rescue operation in "The Perils of Penelope". He also does not play an active role in "Atlantic Inferno" as he was in temporary command of International Rescue.

The voice of Scott was provided by Shane Rimmer.

Thunderbirds 2004 film
In the film, he was portrayed by actor Philip Winchester. Since the film focused on Alan Tracy, not much is known about this version of the character.

Thunderbirds Are Go! (2015–)
In the 2015 TV Series, Scott is portrayed by Rasmus Hardiker. Scott is still the eldest and most experienced Tracy brother and he is bold and fearless in action. He is also the team leader. However, he also possesses a very short temper, as shown whenever a member of his family is at risk because of human error.

References

Category:Fictional American people
Category:Fictional astronauts
Category:Scott Carpenter
Category:Television characters introduced in 1965
Category:Fictional United States Air Force personnel
Category:Thunderbirds (TV series) characters