In this long post I consider a terrifying excess of police power directed to a distressed woman in her own home (Part I) then offer observations on a transcript (Part II)
It's fortunate and advantageous that this appalling exchange was recorded. This poor woman was subjected to bullying and abuse from the PCSO in her own home. Have things degenerated so much that police personnel feel able to hector people whose opinions they disagree with? I hope a case is made of this, and goes far beyond a particularly obnoxious and stupid PCSO losing their job.
Just harrowing listening to this poor woman trying to defend herself on her own doorstep. I hope the relevant police authority takes steps to ensure this never happens again.
Thanks v much for this clarification of the law Dennis - yes, freedom of opinion and expression of that opinion is not only allowed in this country but should be something to celebrate! The sticker did not incite or threaten harm to anyone.
.... not only was this woman and her daughters fully entitled to display that sticker without needing to defend it; but the visit was taking powers into the police's own hands which did not belong there - and further, the attempt to re-educate her even went beyond that in stating unproven beliefs eg that 'transwomen' are 'born that way'. This is of course well beyond the remit of a community policing assistant, so as to constitute a crime in itself, I would suggest.
Moreover, I read that they were in the street to police alleged selling of illicit drugs. Nothing to do with the visit.
The woman and her daughters were harrassed and the woman was obviously and understandably upset: indeed it looks as if the visit was intended to frighten and intimidate them to adopt partisan beliefs.
They and all citizens of this country - need peace of mind that the police will act according to their remit - to prevent and combat crime without fear or favour. What we pay our taxes for ffs.
Of course, it is the **police** themselves - and/or this police assistant in particular - who need re-education' measures to ensure that this will never happen again. I think the PCOS should be sacked for this outrage; and not least there should be both a public and personal apology from the police commissioner with a clear and detailed explanation as to what measures will now be taken asap to ensure this type of incident will not happen again.
This PCSO behaved abominably and should be out of a job yesterday, charged with harassment and intimidation with extra oomph for denigrating the uniform while doing it. Police should be held to higher standards, and this should be a crime.
Thank you so much Dennis for this detailed and informative article. If I was living in England and Wales I’d be printing that off and keeping it handy. The treatment of the woman named as BD was an absolute disgrace. The pretendy police officer involved is obviously a jobsworth who enjoys bullying and hectoring vulnerable people. Disciplinary action, at the very least, needs taken to prevent this type of infringement from being repeated.
The Scottish Hate Crime Bill has been around for 2 years and it seems that the police and courts are still trying to work out how it is practically enforecable.
That and GRA and abuse of the poorly written Equalities Act and now the spectre of Self I.D. is just terrifying for women. Too many who have experienced life so far have had many experiences from childhood onwards of every kind of sexual and physical harassment and also state harassment.
To have to police speech and thought and fear a knock at the door for sharing thoughts and the aggressive fiction lobbyists that have infected every aspect of life to make a few AGP feel validated, it is just mind blowing.
Nowhere else can we have hear and read discussions about the legal aspects of this, in a safe space! Thankyou DNK !
"Concerned for a woman's safety" usually mean treating that member of the public as if they are mentally ill and "vulnerable" usually means here is someone we can bully cos they have no back up. Their actions are for no good reason. It is police intimidation and abuse of power.
The Rise of the Misogynistic Polis now allowed to let rip unfettered abuse at women in their own homes. And what do we know about the police!
I have been in this boat when I was straight out of a major operation and returned to a flat new to me that wasn't fit to live in, for multiple reasons and was a danger to me as I had had surgery. After many complaints to the council they only made things worse by spreading hydrated lime (caustic to skin and lungs and all mucous membranes all around the house in my absence.
So someone advised me to telephone a local MSP. Who wasn't in;
Instead some dim old battleaxe secretary with Mary Whitehouse style views who should only simply passed the message on (she actually never did ) didn't believe what I was telling her and Instead paraphrased me incorrectly as "the council are trying to poison me"
Rather than what I said that they had no right to use powdered lime in a flat inhabited and about to be occupied as a cheapskate remedy to fix a much bigger problem. So basically incompentence.
This old crow reported me as "being a danger to the public and myself" because I said my flat was covered top to bottom in hydrated lime that the council had no right to use to try and amend the original problems with the awful not fit for humans flat. and suddenly I had police round and an unknown doctor. I didn't even know why they were there?
I thought they were investigating the Council!
I was supposed to be in bed for a month for recovery from the op. They even started suggesting that because I was a painter, they started poking around the flat whilst the other officer detained me on the couch, the other started looking at my landscape paintings!! Then came back to suggest I might have some mental health problem like Van Gogh.
They objected to me getting up to go and get a glass of water from my own kitchen.
I was traumatised for years. They got very close to assuming from heresay that I needed Sectioned when I had just come out of major abdominal life saving surgery.
Come back to an insanitary house with not even a toilet working and hadn't known the flat would be rented in such disgusting state.
So just for making a complaint ...after many had fallen on deaf ears to the council and their repairs were just a piss take, I instead ended up with the police in my flat for hours and they even came back demanding to be let in again.
Luckily I refused entry to the GP that they came with the next time. I was terrified out of my wits I had no family near me.
Hours later my only ever encounter with a duty social worker (level headed experienced) put them in their place and said my issue was a housing repair issue that I had every right to flag it up and the report to the police was a malicious busy body with no heart abusing their position. The damage was done I was a wreck afterwards and I still fear a knock at the door anywhere I have lived since. This is a frequent occurance to folk who have through no fault of their own are in a vulnerable or isolated position. It happens more if you are not in work or not in regular work and for many places that is not from lack of qualifications or trying, but it is often for being female and working class and having a mind of your own. They see people as an under class and make ridiculous assumptions.
We are targetted more by the police than anyone else in our own homes. Especially if you are renting it is seen that you have no boundaries in law. Like your own front door if you rent. If you can't get work it is seen as if you don't have human rights.
Have you seen the poison the authorities induced the powerless Leo to broadcast about their drawn out gruesome procedures? The authorities know how to terrorise a population. Authorities have no business victimising us when we stand up for ourselves and our dear ones.
The wrongly ideological contractors can only be undermined by illuminating more context. Minisnterpreting Scriptural mentions of dress codes and kingdom of Heaven goes back a long way as does normalising government intrusion in children's genitals. In this society relationships have disappeared so that there is no-one for men and boys to talk to. Meantime we ought to dress better and shop around as to colour and size / fit as that is the main way to educate shops (demand re-creation of old hemlines). Anyone who can, should sew or crochet contrasting trims. (The contractors maintain that clothing is the root of their cause.) This will take the wind out of the contractor's sails and their police.
This is absolutely horrifying, the behaviour of that PCSO is disgraceful.
The poor woman had already previously been visited by two female police officers after a complaint from this PCSO.
They were clear that there was no offence in leaving the sticker up, but were concerned for her safety.
This PCSO has then gone around to this woman’s home off her own back apparently “re-educate” her.
Very authoritarian implying that this lady’s personal world ends after she’s opened her front door.
People’s worlds go massively further than their front doors surely? This reminds me of coercive control
It's fortunate and advantageous that this appalling exchange was recorded. This poor woman was subjected to bullying and abuse from the PCSO in her own home. Have things degenerated so much that police personnel feel able to hector people whose opinions they disagree with? I hope a case is made of this, and goes far beyond a particularly obnoxious and stupid PCSO losing their job.
Just harrowing listening to this poor woman trying to defend herself on her own doorstep. I hope the relevant police authority takes steps to ensure this never happens again.
Gobsmacking
Thanks v much for this clarification of the law Dennis - yes, freedom of opinion and expression of that opinion is not only allowed in this country but should be something to celebrate! The sticker did not incite or threaten harm to anyone.
.... not only was this woman and her daughters fully entitled to display that sticker without needing to defend it; but the visit was taking powers into the police's own hands which did not belong there - and further, the attempt to re-educate her even went beyond that in stating unproven beliefs eg that 'transwomen' are 'born that way'. This is of course well beyond the remit of a community policing assistant, so as to constitute a crime in itself, I would suggest.
Moreover, I read that they were in the street to police alleged selling of illicit drugs. Nothing to do with the visit.
The woman and her daughters were harrassed and the woman was obviously and understandably upset: indeed it looks as if the visit was intended to frighten and intimidate them to adopt partisan beliefs.
They and all citizens of this country - need peace of mind that the police will act according to their remit - to prevent and combat crime without fear or favour. What we pay our taxes for ffs.
Of course, it is the **police** themselves - and/or this police assistant in particular - who need re-education' measures to ensure that this will never happen again. I think the PCOS should be sacked for this outrage; and not least there should be both a public and personal apology from the police commissioner with a clear and detailed explanation as to what measures will now be taken asap to ensure this type of incident will not happen again.
This PCSO behaved abominably and should be out of a job yesterday, charged with harassment and intimidation with extra oomph for denigrating the uniform while doing it. Police should be held to higher standards, and this should be a crime.
Thank you so much Dennis for this detailed and informative article. If I was living in England and Wales I’d be printing that off and keeping it handy. The treatment of the woman named as BD was an absolute disgrace. The pretendy police officer involved is obviously a jobsworth who enjoys bullying and hectoring vulnerable people. Disciplinary action, at the very least, needs taken to prevent this type of infringement from being repeated.
The Scottish Hate Crime Bill has been around for 2 years and it seems that the police and courts are still trying to work out how it is practically enforecable.
That and GRA and abuse of the poorly written Equalities Act and now the spectre of Self I.D. is just terrifying for women. Too many who have experienced life so far have had many experiences from childhood onwards of every kind of sexual and physical harassment and also state harassment.
To have to police speech and thought and fear a knock at the door for sharing thoughts and the aggressive fiction lobbyists that have infected every aspect of life to make a few AGP feel validated, it is just mind blowing.
Nowhere else can we have hear and read discussions about the legal aspects of this, in a safe space! Thankyou DNK !
"Concerned for a woman's safety" usually mean treating that member of the public as if they are mentally ill and "vulnerable" usually means here is someone we can bully cos they have no back up. Their actions are for no good reason. It is police intimidation and abuse of power.
fkn hell, it's abuse just reading the transcript.
The Rise of the Misogynistic Polis now allowed to let rip unfettered abuse at women in their own homes. And what do we know about the police!
I have been in this boat when I was straight out of a major operation and returned to a flat new to me that wasn't fit to live in, for multiple reasons and was a danger to me as I had had surgery. After many complaints to the council they only made things worse by spreading hydrated lime (caustic to skin and lungs and all mucous membranes all around the house in my absence.
So someone advised me to telephone a local MSP. Who wasn't in;
Instead some dim old battleaxe secretary with Mary Whitehouse style views who should only simply passed the message on (she actually never did ) didn't believe what I was telling her and Instead paraphrased me incorrectly as "the council are trying to poison me"
Rather than what I said that they had no right to use powdered lime in a flat inhabited and about to be occupied as a cheapskate remedy to fix a much bigger problem. So basically incompentence.
This old crow reported me as "being a danger to the public and myself" because I said my flat was covered top to bottom in hydrated lime that the council had no right to use to try and amend the original problems with the awful not fit for humans flat. and suddenly I had police round and an unknown doctor. I didn't even know why they were there?
I thought they were investigating the Council!
I was supposed to be in bed for a month for recovery from the op. They even started suggesting that because I was a painter, they started poking around the flat whilst the other officer detained me on the couch, the other started looking at my landscape paintings!! Then came back to suggest I might have some mental health problem like Van Gogh.
They objected to me getting up to go and get a glass of water from my own kitchen.
I was traumatised for years. They got very close to assuming from heresay that I needed Sectioned when I had just come out of major abdominal life saving surgery.
Come back to an insanitary house with not even a toilet working and hadn't known the flat would be rented in such disgusting state.
So just for making a complaint ...after many had fallen on deaf ears to the council and their repairs were just a piss take, I instead ended up with the police in my flat for hours and they even came back demanding to be let in again.
Luckily I refused entry to the GP that they came with the next time. I was terrified out of my wits I had no family near me.
Hours later my only ever encounter with a duty social worker (level headed experienced) put them in their place and said my issue was a housing repair issue that I had every right to flag it up and the report to the police was a malicious busy body with no heart abusing their position. The damage was done I was a wreck afterwards and I still fear a knock at the door anywhere I have lived since. This is a frequent occurance to folk who have through no fault of their own are in a vulnerable or isolated position. It happens more if you are not in work or not in regular work and for many places that is not from lack of qualifications or trying, but it is often for being female and working class and having a mind of your own. They see people as an under class and make ridiculous assumptions.
We are targetted more by the police than anyone else in our own homes. Especially if you are renting it is seen that you have no boundaries in law. Like your own front door if you rent. If you can't get work it is seen as if you don't have human rights.
"That’s not my job to educate you, but you need to educate yourself."
Translation: "I don't understand it either, but I'm really enjoying this opportunity to be a bully"
Hi Dennis. Has this gone any further, do you know?
If there are genuine cases for something or other at some age they should be treated tactfully and not weaponised against us.
Have you seen the poison the authorities induced the powerless Leo to broadcast about their drawn out gruesome procedures? The authorities know how to terrorise a population. Authorities have no business victimising us when we stand up for ourselves and our dear ones.
The wrongly ideological contractors can only be undermined by illuminating more context. Minisnterpreting Scriptural mentions of dress codes and kingdom of Heaven goes back a long way as does normalising government intrusion in children's genitals. In this society relationships have disappeared so that there is no-one for men and boys to talk to. Meantime we ought to dress better and shop around as to colour and size / fit as that is the main way to educate shops (demand re-creation of old hemlines). Anyone who can, should sew or crochet contrasting trims. (The contractors maintain that clothing is the root of their cause.) This will take the wind out of the contractor's sails and their police.