Comments on: Some UK police did not get last week’s memo

By: Jon Quimbly

Jon Quimbly — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 21:43:26 +0000

@Todd Think of it as an insurance policy, one you hope to never have to call in.

By: Todd

Todd — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 15:29:57 +0000

If I have to wear a video camera to take a bloody picture, there’s no way I’ll visit Britain. I prefer countries where I don’t need constant photographic surveillance of what’s in front of me to ensure I’m not bullied by a thick-headed and hateful police force.

By: Jon Quimbly

Jon Quimbly — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 01:46:28 +0000

From Carlos’s earlier post on the alleged change in UK photographer policing policy-

Officers and community support officers are reminded that we should not be stopping and searching people for taking photos…

If an officer is suspicious of them for some reason they can just go up to them and have a chat with them – use old-fashioned policing skills to be frank – rather than using these powers, which we don’t want to over-use at all.

See how well that worked out?

The photographer was told he was being searched because he was not co-operating. ‘Under the power we have we will physically search you unless you give us the details we need, such as your address,’ an officer told him.

When anti-terrorism policing cockups are reduced to “he said-she said” debates, we’ll never know.

Always ALWAYS bring a cheap video-capable pocket camera, and wear it around your neck to record your police interactions!

Short of that, a tape recorder or iPhone audio capture program.

If you think you’re going to be harassed by cops/insecurity guards for snapping pics, and don’t want to come out of it looking like a total schempf, GO PREPARED TO CAPTURE EVIDENCE! Sheesh.

By: Michaelk42

Michaelk42 — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 00:54:04 +0000

You’d have to send out a memo telling them they couldn’t just push people around because they felt like it.

We can guess how well that would go over with some of them.

By: Frank

Frank — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 00:21:38 +0000

Is anyone really surprised by this? How hard is it to sue police in pro per in the UK? When some of these Ministry jobsworths lose their life savings and their families are living in a cardboard box over a steam vent attitudes will change for the better.

By: mepsipax

mepsipax — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 16:13:52 +0000

What happens there often times happens here later. Well well well. Time will tell.

By: JR

JR — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 11:25:18 +0000

I knew this. One memo won’t get rid of the idiocrazy of LEO’s. You need a huge shitstorm before anything is going to change for real.

By: Long_Time_Reader

Long_Time_Reader — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 10:35:54 +0000

I fess up. I gave them a whole fortnight (2 weeks) in the memo thread. I’m a terrible gambler I guess, or too optimistic.

Who had 3 days?

So there’s even closer ties between the guards and police in the U.K.? Heck, in the U.S. at least, the guards will crow and bluff about calling police but never do it 95% of the time.

Glossed over his web page, definitely a professional. Beautiful photos.