Tipstaff

It is also the name of a symbolic rod, which represents the authority of the tipstaff or other officials such as senior police officers.

8. c. 63) stipulating the personnel required to man the English castle at Calais said that there should be: The same act also gave instructions for selecting a replacement should a Tippstaff die in service.

In 1555 when Reverend Rowland Taylor was burned at the stake during the reign of Queen Mary I for his religious views that were contrary to those of Lord Chancellor Gardiner.

[2] By the middle of the nineteenth century the term has transferred to a baton wielded by members of the embryonic police authorities, officers would arrest people by beating them with a tipped staff or stave.

The crown, which unscrewed, could be removed to reveal inside the hollow staff a warrant appointing the holder to their position of authority.

[2] Examples remain at the Royal Courts of Justice and the Metropolitan Police Heritage Centre in London and vary depending on the type and rank of officer.

[2] The emblem of two crossed tipstaves within a wreath appears on the rank insignia of senior police officers in several Commonwealth countries, including the United Kingdom and Australia.

In Canada, the emblem is used for the most senior officers of the Ontario Provincial Police and Royal Newfoundland Constabulary.

[2] Sometimes a local bailiff or police will detain a person in custody until the tipstaff arrives to collect them and take them to court or prison.

The tipstaff heads a procession of the lord chancellor and judges at the start of the legal year‚ preceding them with their staff as a symbol of authority and law enforcement.

The majority of their work involves taking children into custody (i.e. a place of safety)‚ including cases of child abduction abroad.

The Criminal Trial Division employs tipstaves in positions commonly referred to as court officers.