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| "If you keep filming me I will seize your camera as evidence of the complaint" - PC Glen Crosland. |
A photographer has received £3,000 and an apology from Thames Valley Police after it admitted its officers acted unlawfully by searching and detaining him.
The rights of photographers is of interest to us, because TV Licensing often tries to deter people from photographing its employees. We apologise to anyone that considers this article slightly off-topic and invite them to stop reading now.
In October 2015 the anonymous photographer was out in Aylesbury town centre taking some video footage of everyday life. His innocent filming resulted in a confrontation with the police, which he later uploaded to YouTube:
The police approached and wanted to know why he was filming. Quite rightly, as an innocent man going about his lawful business, he refused to entertain the police line of questioning. The police, clearly frustrated at his disobedience, decided to subject the photographer to an unlawful search and unlawful detention. They also removed his camera equipment, despite having no right to do so.
We commented on the video shortly after it was uploaded: "Filming of buildings and landmarks is deemed to be suspicious behaviour? What absolute twoddle. I'm amazed the police have the arrogance to come out with such complete and total bullshit in an era when everyone films everything."
Fortunately the photographer in question got in touch with Rob Warner at Crimebodge, who helped him make a claim against Thames Valley Police.
Having reviewed the footage, Thames Valley Police's legal people have concurred that the actions of its officers were both unjustified and unlawful.
Rob picks up the story here:
All too often the police, just like TV Licensing, mistakenly think they can make up the law as they go along. We hope the outcome of this case makes Thames Valley Police think a bit more carefully about how it deals with law abiding photographers in future.
It is perfectly legal for anyone to photograph or film anything in a public place. They do not need to explain or justify their actions to anyone, including the police.
We would encourage everyone with a camera to get down to Aylesbury town centre and film until their heart's content.
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2 comments:
Rob's video is no longer available. "This video is no longer available due to a copyright claim by Thames Valley Police".
I happened to watch the video earlier before it was taken down. I can't see what was copyright - unless TVP are claiming that the image of their letter was copyright?! On the surface this looks like extremely petty and subversive behaviour from TVP, who have been rightly held to account through the legal system and publicly shamed for their disgraceful behaviour.
The police are out of order. They seize people's equipment and they never get it back when there is no investigation into their appalling conduct. Police are ignoramus bullies. PC Glen Crosland should be sacked, he is an uneducated, malicious, character disordered abuser. The police work against the public and are despicable. I am pleased that the photographer got the justice he deserved. Thank you for writing this article and exposing the Police for what they truly are. This is what the police do all the time - they are vile. They steal our pets because the Freemason Government underhandedly sneaked through BSL, very quickly, without our knowledge.
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