Police Officer making up a law

[indigomagic]

Just found this and wondered what the mumsnetter consensus is.

(attempting link)

www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/officers-claim-they-dont-need-law-to-stop-photographer-taking-pi ctures-2012827.html

Basically, it is a 16 year old freelancer photographer, who is taking photos at a parade. He gets stopped by the police and amongst other things is told it is illegal to take photos of minors without parental consent, it is illegal to take photos of a police officer, and he is considered a threat under the Terrorism Act.

There is a recording of altercation with the police. Personally, I think he was in the right, and it is good to see a young person willing to stand up for themselves. However, endless repeats of 'under what law...?' may not be the least antagonistic way of going about things - but, he is 16! The confusion surrounding the laws on photgraphy need to be clarified, although as the Chief of Police Officers have already issued several briefings to police forces explaining current laws, I am not sure what else can be done.

This isn't rare or uncommon. The two other photographers that the article mentions that went through a similar thing and won £3,500 in compensation are apparently helping this lad get a lawyer.

Once again the officers dragged out anti-terrorism law, and they want us to trust them to use the same law to allow people to be locked up for weeks without charge.

I cannot believe this country has become such a fashist state where people cannot photograph public events or buildings without the police or some private security moron coming the heavy.
Sadly the new anti-terrorist laws can be brought to bear, but there must be some strong evidence.
What is not allowed is the seizing and destroying of film or images. That is an absolute no no.

I would suggest this young man join the National Union for Journalists, that way he will at least have an official Press Pass that should, but not always, be recognised by the police as a bona fide means of identification. They will also act in a very srong way on behalf of any photographer who is harassed by the police.

Let us hope this new coalition will start to get rid of the terrible laws brought in by the paranoid new labour thugs.

So let me get this straight - we live in a country with the highest proportion of CCTV in the World but we are not allowed to photograph things because the police do not like it?

Was it a Police Officer who told him he couldn't take photos or a cadet?

Scurryfunge - as far as I know from blog posts and other sites, it was an adult army cadet accompanying the young cadets that initially objected, and then the police officers took over, it was the police he told him he was not allowed.

Sounds rather odd to me....there are anti terrorism laws that can prevent this but it seems some fuckwit who didn't know the law has got involved and spouted off.

I would guess it was a Special Constable spouting this rubbish having listened to the recording.....no excuses...they have the same powers but nowhere near the same training.

TheRegister covers this sort of thing regularly and Mark Thomas has a campaign going. It would be funny if it wasn't so sad.

My colleague is married to a policeman and she told me this the other week. No, you can't take pictures of police officers, not sure about public events though.

Sadly misuse of the terrorism laws (which were rushed through in response to "public concern") are common.

That we must rely on the police to act appropriately and proportionately and apply the laws fairly is a very real concern.

MissPopOff - are you sure? I was under the impression that it is not illegal to take photos of uniformed police officers. Neither is it against the law to take pictures of the armed forces.

As far as I know, the only exceptions to this is if they are nonuniformed, on covert operations, where it would potentially be dangerous, ruin the cover etc.

My DP was threatened with arrest under the terrorism act not very long ago, when he saw a police officer CS spray a homeless man who was walking away from him and took some pictures as evidence.

If ordinary people can't photograph the police, how can they be held to account when they misbehave?

Missus84, you are right,it is the insecurity of those officers involved that encourages such pish...the police have to be transparent about their actions.

"If ordinary people can't photograph the police, how can they be held to account when they misbehave?"

I think this is the real reason. Anti-terrorism my arse!

"My colleague is married to a policeman and she told me this the other week. No, you can't take pictures of police officers, not sure about public events though.'

And there go the police lying again....

You most certainly can take photographs of police officers. On their web site even the Met Police admit this.

www.met.police.uk/about/photography.htm

"Members of the public and the media do not need a permit to film or photograph in public places and police have no power to stop them filming or photographing incidents or police personnel."

However the reality on the street is that you repeatedly have Police Officers and Hobby Bobbies who are either ignorant of the law or decide to place themselves above it using the clout of the anti-terrorism legislation.

"I would suggest this young man join the National Union for Journalists"

So the solution to the Police either ignoring the seemingly constant announcements from senior officers that photography is OK or those senior officers telling one thing to the public and another thing to their officers is for us to have to join a union?

It is generally just the Met who fuck up in this way......provincial forces are a little more demanding of officers.

www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/henryporter/2009/jul/16/photography-police-view-delete-images

More demanding? Kent Police arrest photographers for being too tall....

snigger.....unbelievable!

And the police wonder why there is so much mistrust towards them? God, talk about giving someone a uniform and they get a God complex/power trip.

Some lad is doing something perfectly resonable and legal, some copper trys to bullshit him he's breaking the law. He stands up for himself, won't be intimidated so is arrested.

I hope that copper is sacked, he's a disgrace to the police.

Clearly it is all his own fault for Being Tall In A Public Place And Taking Pictures. tsk tsk.

Yes, contrary to the Tall Persons Act 2001 (section 9, subsection(2))

Afraid it's not just the Met - police in Bristol try the same thing.

Too often the police are no longer part of the community but abuse their position within it.

Partially as a result of the target mentality, they spend all their time chasing trivial offences (and as this video shows, even non-crimes) instead of doing the difficult and boring work of tackling anti-social behaviour, drug dealing and burglary.

This is exacerbated by the leadership culture of ACPO. This makes me even more certain that we need to disband ACPO and get elected police commissioners whose voters just won't tolerate this sort of thing.

This is what the authoritarian world of Jacqui Smith, David Blunkett, Gordon Brown and Sir Lord Ian Blair looks like.

I couldn't believe that the policeman pulled the "terrorism" excuse. Devaluing the threat of terrorism that way is so dangerous. It seems to have become institutionalised though.