Photographing the police (Come on Derek...smile :D)

If it was purely upto me it would go further but he has a caution from a couple of years ago (he and his friends were camping on a field without permission) and is worried that the police would give him more hassle if he makes a big thing of this. I have to be honest speaking to him while trying to convince him to take it further i am finding i was wrong many of todays youth are scared of the police but it's the wrong type of fear for the wrong reasons and thats something i am going to have to think more about in relation to my defence of the police in future.

On a plus point one of my friends who is into the whole mobile phone thing (i am a luddite use it for calls nothing else ) has come and restored everything and he did it in less then a minute so completely pointless thing for the officer to do making this whole thing even more pointless.

[rogerdraig]

Originally Posted by Derek S

I can't see the point of cops wanting to get involved in a fight with someone filming if its blatantly obvious they aren't doing anything illegal. It reminds me of the episode of top gear where they race through London and some cop pulls James May over to check the film crew have the relevant permits and then completely misses the joke about escorting the crew through traffic on blues and twos and makes himself look like a tit.



That said most cops are very edgy about any arrests or what they do being filmed by outsiders as its way too easy to be edited and shown in a bad light. They don't have any powers to delete the images but they can seize the phone as evidence if need be (I've never heard of it actually coming to this but it is an option)

the seizing of the phone as evidence doesnt bother me if it was needed though it would likely be better to just get them to send or down load the relevent video pictures at a station

as as i see it either the police or the person deleting it could be seen as tampering with evidence if an offence by the officer or those he was dealing with got to go to court

but i fear most of this down to police being overly sensitive to being watched something the rest of us seem to have to put up with wit cctv etc

if the filming was causing a disturbance or the officer really believes it is being done to further terrorism then surly he should seize the phone as evidence of such not get the person to save them selves from prosecution for either by deleting it which as i see it may even lay themselves open to problems if either of those things they believed were true

the good police need to help get the rest working to the rules to help keep those of the public who try to support them on side as i fear this one could rapidly cast them in te role of the enemy rather quickly if they are not careful

[Derek]

As someone of restricted size I say fairplay to Kent Police in cracking down on the menace of moderately sized photographers.

As a person who has a small amount of common sense though I find myself thinking "What on earth were they doing when they arrested him?"

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2009/07...photographers/

Kent Police set a new legal precedent last week, as they arrested a photographer on the unusual grounds of "being too tall".

[Stephen]

Originally Posted by Derek S

As someone of restricted size I say fairplay to Kent Police in cracking down on the menace of moderately sized photographers.

As a person who has a small amount of common sense though I find myself thinking "What on earth were they doing when they arrested him?"

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2009/07...photographers/

Lmao that is totally the most stupid thing I have heard in a long time!

So I guess the officer couldn't think of any reason at all and was feeling a little intimidated by the 'tall' person.

[LondonRoad]

It can't be easy Derek.....

and stories like this don't help

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/...nd/8149629.stm

[Derek]

traffic patrol officers attended

Traffic going to a cyclist on the Motorway. He's lucky he wasn't shot. They aren't the most forgiving of people.

[LondonRoad]

Originally Posted by Derek S

Traffic going to a cyclist on the Motorway. He's lucky he wasn't shot. They aren't the most forgiving of people.

Yes, but now through their incompetence he is getting away with it completely. I'd have thought traffic should know immediately what offence(s) were being committed.

[Gary L]

Originally Posted by harmitage

Yes, but now through their incompetence he is getting away with it completely. I'd have thought traffic should know immediately what offence(s) were being committed.

They clearly didn't know. they just saw that it was a motorway and did the script where motorway = car = licence = points and money.
I think the fact he was on a bicycle makes the officer a wally.

I think the cyclist was a wally - according to the story

He said he had only been cycling for a few minutes when he was stopped, and was following a sat nav when he accidentally strayed onto the motorway.

He "accidently" went on the Motorway - you thought he may have noticed all the cars travelling at 70MPH and the motorway signs.

Rule 253 of the Highway Code states

Prohibited vehicles. Motorways MUST NOT be used by pedestrians, holders of provisional motorcycle or car licences, riders of motorcycles under 50 cc, cyclists, horse riders, certain slow-moving vehicles and those carrying oversized loads (except by special permission), agricultural vehicles, and powered wheelchairs/powered mobility scooters (see Rules 36-46 incl).

[LondonRoad]

The cyclist was (is) a wally putting his own and other lives at risk.

ffs - claiming he was directed there by his sat nav.

Those BIG blue signs are a bit of an indication that there's a motorway coming up.

I'd have thought, at the very least, if it had been handled correctly he should have got a fine.

[Derek]

Originally Posted by Gary L

They clearly didn't know. they just saw that it was a motorway and did the script where motorway = car = licence = points and money.
I think the fact he was on a bicycle makes the officer a wally.

You can issue fixed penalty tickets designed for motorists to people on pedal cycles...

Just because it has a space for driving licence numbers doesnt mean it that space has to be filled in.

[glam_racket]

Originally Posted by Derek S

That said most cops are very edgy about any arrests or what they do being filmed by outsiders as its way too easy to be edited and shown in a bad light. They don't have any powers to delete the images but they can seize the phone as evidence if need be (I've never heard of it actually coming to this but it is an option)

With this in mind, is it any wonder a large proportion of the public are dubious about the spurious benefits of CCTV, surely what's sauce for the goose...

[Gary L]

Originally Posted by Derek S

You can issue fixed penalty tickets designed for motorists to people on pedal cycles...

Just because it has a space for driving licence numbers doesnt mean it that space has to be filled in.

But you don't get three penalty points on your driving licence if you're commiting the offence on your push bike.

[rogerdraig]

Originally Posted by Gary L

But you don't get three penalty points on your driving licence if you're commiting the offence on your push bike.

but he still could have been given a fine by a court of up to £2500 for a various number of offences from recklesness to ignoring signs having wa sat nav doesnt negate your responsibility to check the road

personally i think any one who says the sat nav told me should automatically get done for due care and attention

[Gary L]

Originally Posted by rogermevans

but he still could have been given a fine by a court of up to £2500 for a various number of offences from recklesness to ignoring signs having wa sat nav doesnt negate your responsibility to check the road

There's all sorts of things that he could have been given. but they gave him 3 points on his driving licence, which were taken off because they had no cause to issue them to him in the first place.

it's like banning you from driving because you were drinking on a bus