Photographic Assault

The British police seem to have come to the conclusion that harassing the law-abiding citizens of the nation is an easier way to meet their government targets than actually going after criminals. That kind of work is evidently to difficult and dangerous.

In the latest example of what one can only assume is the result of an "us vs them" culture, we have this-

A householder who took photographs of hooded teenagers as evidence of their anti-social behaviour says he was told he was breaking the law after they called the police.

The thugs youths had been causing trouble (shouting abuse and throwing stones) for months. When the man in question contacted the local school about the problem he was told they could do nothing unless the troublemakers were identified. So, he did.

But when Mr Green left his £1million London flat to take photographs of the gang, who were aged around 17, he said one threatened to kill him while another called the police on his mobile.

In a sane and rational world you might think that the thug youth would have been the target of law enforcement's ire for threatening to kill someone. But wait, we're talking about 21st century Britain-

And he claimed that a Police Community Support Officer sent to the scene promptly issued a warning that taking pictures of youths without permission was illegal, and could lead to a charge of assault.

Presumably the photography leading to an assault charge is some holdover from the primitive belief that cameras can somehow steal souls?

Last night Mr Green, a television cameraman, said he was appalled that the legal system's first priority seemed not to be stopping frightening anti-social behaviour by aggressive youths, but protecting them from being photographed by the concerned public.

And another member of the public becomes aware of the unsettling focus of Britain's police...