Virginia Beach police seize photos from Abercrombie store

[truthpusher]

Source: The Virginian-Pilot

Police, saying they were responding to citizen complaints, carted away two large promotional photographs from the Abercrombie & Fitch store in Lynnhaven Mall on Saturday and cited the manager on obscenity charges.

Adam Bernstein, a police spokesman, said the seizure and the issuance of the summons came only after store management had not heeded warnings to remove the images.

The citation was issued under City Code Section 22.31, Bernstein said, which makes it a crime to display "obscene materials in a business that is open to juveniles." He did not say what was being done with the pictures and when the manager, whose name was not released, is scheduled to appear in court.

(snip)

The mural-like black-and-white photographs were taken from the store at midafternoon.

Bernstein confirmed that one depicts three shirtless young men from the back, walking through a field. The man in the lead appears to be about to pull up his jeans, which have slipped down enough to reveal his upper buttocks.

The same image is displayed on the Abercrombie Web site.

The other image is of a woman who is topless and whose "breast is displayed with her hand covering just the nipple portion," Bernstein said. "You could still pretty much see the rest of the breast."





Read more: http://hamptonroads.com/node/452689

[Starbucks Anarchist]

1. People with guns worried about breasts?

:rofl:

[burythehatchet]

2. Tits can smother you while you sleep.

[OffWithTheirHeads]

11. Some terraists have tits. AAAAAAAkkkk

I'm so afraid now! Even my wife has tits. What to do? What to do?

[guruoo]

63. Indeed, the danger is real...

Never before seen screen snaps allegedly taken from terrorist training video

[tomreedtoon]

28. I think you misread "tits" for "cats."

Cats can climb upon you while you sleep and suck all the breath and life from your body. Come to think of it, so can Madonna and Miley Cyrus, so maybe you were technically right about "tits" being responsible.

[baldguy]

6. Someone else on DU mention this before.

There's a movie showing a man slipping his __________ into a woman's __________.

The the blanks are filled in by "knife" & "abdomen", then it can be shown to small children in primetime TV - and people have no problem with it.

The the blanks are filled in by "penis" & "vagina", then it's x-rated, and the broadcasters are condemned, fined & put in jail.

[OhioChick]

3. Apparently

The Virginia Beach police have nothing better to do.

On Edit to Add:

This is "Too Obscene?" :rofl:

http://www.abercrombie.com/anf/lifestyles/html/photogallery.html

[Cronus Protagonist]

81. They must have missed this one.... mmmmmmm.....

I'm thinking whatever he's got, I want. :P

[Orrex]

4. New headline: VA Police Seize Tits and Ass

What, exactly, is too much breast? Eighty percent, maybe? Does the relative cup-size make a difference?

And how far had the young fellow's pants drooped?


Thank goodness that the gendarmes were there to prevent anyone from seeing anything!

[Akoto]

5. The upper buttocks? Heavens! In the eternal words of Helen Lovejoy ...

http://imageshack.us>

[Donk Yore]

25. I guess they're going to have to

outlaw juveniles at the beach also. An abundance of barely covered breasts there, and butts aplenty.

[hvn_nbr_2]

62. Heck with juveniles at the beach. They'll have to outlaw plumbers. nt

[mdmc]

35. kick

for the kids

[keroro gunsou]

40. and in the words of george carlin

fuck the children.

[Alenne]

7. O M G

Thank God the VA Beach police were there to save the poor kids from butt crack and side boob.

[flvegan]

8. Will they next storm the museums and art galleries?

Lot more nudity in those places to be outraged about and removed, I'm sure.

I can't believe that people complained about those two pics. Jesus, people...get a hobby.

[TommyO]

14. But that's "art", this is "advertising"

In either cases, the photographs were extremely well done and tasteful, though the males were a bit too young and hairless (IMHO, of course).

[tigereye]

89. that's what I was just thinking..

our country is so puritanistic...


like teens have never seen these kinds of things :eyes:

[MaineDem]

9. All the military killing machines in the Hamptons Roads area

But they worry about a kid's butt!

Military suicides at a record high but we have to protect the public from less boob than they can see on the beach.

Unbelievable!

[ursi]

10. ...the police there have nothing better to do?

[digidigido]

12. A&F Promos

It's interesting. Someone once asked Robert Redford why he made the movie Quiz Show.
It was a good movie, but not a particularly big hit. HIs response, and I'm paraphrasing,
was he wanted to make a movie about shame before people forgot the concept.
I am a card carrying member of the ACLU, and I'm a parent. I remember my son wanting
A&F catalog 6 years ago, and going into the store and the wouldn't sell it to him since he
wasn't 18. I bought it an took it home, and in truth it was soft core porn, and far more
titillating then mens magazines. So, if businesses have no shame, and an the majority
of the country have no shame, then it's time the people who understood the concept
did something to wake up the people who think having no shame is alright

[Diogenes2]

20. Shame? About what? Are we on the same page here?

Your son wasn't eighteen? Was he seventeen? How old? What's so horrible about being "titillated"? Just asking.

[CanSocDem]

23. It's advertising.....

...but what it is actually trying to sell isn't clear. The fact that the corporations can just titillate us with vague sexual images to promote 'brand loyalty', is embarrassing to say the least. We shouldn't get into THEIR problems, until we deal with our own.

A good start would be becoming less of a consumer. After that we can work on removing our sexual repression....

[digidigido]

33. Shame

My son was 13 at the time, but perhaps you have not been to Abercrombie
Shame is what a business that markets it's products for 12-16 year olds, and
advertises to them as if they were 20 should feel. This is not a comment about
sex being something to be shameful about among adults. What it is, is a rant
about companies who choose to put profit over morality, and misguided liberals
who confuse exploitation and manipulation of minors with police repression

[YOY]

61. "Misguided liberals"

Jesus fucking Christ on a pogo stick. Talk about having your head up your ass...ACLU member my ass. Aparently Rush taught you how we "Liberals" think huh?

Thanks for visiting us Mr Stossel...

[Carni]

73. You know you could just not shop there...

I know it's a novel concept, bt if you want to send a message to a retailer whose advertising offends you...it's easy, don't shop there!

No, I haven't been there and if you hate the place so much neither should you!

Very simple!

BTW my objection to A&F isn't the sight of a buttcrack now and then in their ads
(and please...who hasn't seen the low slung pants on teenagers EVERYWHERE over the last few years apparently plumbing stereotypes are near and dear to their hearts)
it's because I think they are overpriced in this bush economy.

[Art_from_Ark]

88. When I was 9 or 10, my friend delighted in taking me

to the local pharmacy, which had issues of Stag on the magazine rack available for our perusal. One picture showed a man and a woman taking a bath together. When I saw that, I thought I was going to go blind, like ol' Peeping Tom.

Then when I was 12, another friend showed me his collection of Playboys and Penthouses which his father had given him. Seeing all them nekkid women scarred me for life, I tells ya!

[tabasco]

36. Go live in Iran if the sight of human skin makes you feel shameful.

This is the USA and we have the right to free speech and the right to be free from Puritan dictatorship.

[OhioChick]

37. I Have an A&F Catalog Here

And it's by no means "soft core porn.":eyes:

[clixtox]

46. "Having no shame"...

is much better than having too much shame, or whatever you want to call such naive puritan insecurity.

This whole stupid imbroglio is testimony to how dumb and uncivilized AmeriKKKa has become.

A & F have to be thrilled that these thought gestapo idiots created this publicity bonanza.

[Orsino]

50. These people choose to be born with naughty parts...

...and don't have the decency to be ashamed of them. They're trying to have it both ways. :popcorn:

[Occulus]

47. Shame is very likely why I'm adopted

Shame is also why my mom gave me a wet ditch to sleep in...

I don't think I'll be buying what you're selling. Thanks, though.

[northzax]

69. and they wouldn't sell it to him?

talk about a great way to increase demand. Seriously, sounds like the store did the right thing.

[dipsydoodle]

13. Welcome to

1908 America. Is this part of a cunning plot to make genuinely you the laughing stock of the world ?

[micraphone]

26. Too late

It's already happened, starting in 2001.

[bigworld]

15. A breast? Check out the Virginia State seal & flag

[Benhurst]

16. Now you've done it!

I'm so turned on I won't be able to go back to work.

[mahatmakanejeeves]

17. I think the tyrant is ...

holding a cellphone with a camera and taking an upskirt picture of the woman with the exposed ***.

Also, note that there is a beach at Virginia Beach where it is not at all unusual to see quite a few shirtless young men at any given time. Others are wearing skin-tight wetsuits. Not that there's anything wrong with that.

[daleo]

39. Yeah, but she's got a sword

And she just killed a guy. So, the breast is acceptable, since it is linked to violence.

[Art_from_Ark]

86. That comment was so true, yet so funny at the same time

Definitely deserving of a DUzy :rofl: :bounce: :thumbsup:

[yurbud]

58. and that guy on the ground could be looking up her skirt

[14thColony]

18. Here's an idea...

If you don't like it, walk out of the store.

If you don't like it, change the channel.

If you don't like it, don't go see that film.

If you don't like it, don't buy that magazine.

[DeSwiss]

19. Virginia Beach!?!?!?!

Oh shit. That's Pat Robertson territory. No doubt one of his faithful audience members on their way to a 700 Club Meeting, got waylaid (no pun intended) and ended up in that Abercrombie & Fitch store.

- And what is one of the pre-ratured to do??? Why call the Gestaspo, of course!

[fedupinBushcountry]

21. True dat

I live in VB and you have no idea what I have to go through everyday just driving, it's like be damned if you don't adhere to all their messages on their cars. I just shake my head. I did see one great bumper sticker that read " Fundamentalism stops your brain from thinking".

[The Wizard]

22. Oh Jeebus

Pat Robertson in a speedo. Anyone gettin' wood over that image?:puke: :puke: :puke:

[TheMadMonk]

24. Yeah a club to use on your pointy little head. nt.

[uppityperson]

27. photogallery link here (3 shirtless men second in series)

http://www.abercrombie.com/anf/lifestyles/html/photogallery.html
"want to be a model? Start by working in our store. Models must be 18 or older."
Having never been near a A&C store, are all the workers young buff people?

[Ian David]

31. That's IT?? Geesh! n/t

[uppityperson]

32. Not as offensive as all those "plumber" guys, or underwear showing guys.

But hey, that's just me.

[allalone]

43. oh geez, they're just puling up their pants

funny how fundy minds go directly to the gutter

[devilgrrl]

29. The prices Abercombie & Fitch charges for clothing is obscene

Bet they charge $70+ for those pants that the kids are getting ready to take off.

Why doesn't someone talk about that?

[northzax]

70. seventy dollars!

omg, that's hillarious. we talking about the sale rack?

aw, crap. I said rack. now the wingnuts will complain.

[Ian David]

30. I predict this will be the lead story on The Factor. n/t

[askeptic]

34. Just goes to show you don't need to go to Afghanistan to see

how weird and over -the - top fundamentalists are...

[Marrah_G]

49. The two cannot be compared

It's insulting to the people, especially the women of Afgahnistan to say taking down a picture from a public place showing close to naked people is the same as being put to death for showing even your face.

[askeptic]

84. you are only talking degree - same attitude

These weirdo's would be doing the same thing if society endorsed it. Perhaps the horrors of past christian "justice" has been forgotten.

[daleo]

38. It is shocking

In olden days a glimpse of stocking
Was looked on as something shocking
But now God knows
Anything goes

[allalone]

41. don't they have teenage boys there?

I see boy butts everyday cuz they have droopy drawers. these people are really starting to get on my last nerve. what's next?

[allalone]

42. I've always thought A & F sold hunting & fishing gear.

boy, am I ever out of the loop.

[OhioChick]

44. They Used To...

Company History:
During the first half of the 20th century Abercrombie & Fitch Co. was the definitive store for America's sporting elite, outfitting big-game hunters, fishermen, and other adventurers. After the chain went bankrupt in 1977, Oshman's Sporting Goods revived the Abercrombie & Fitch name but shifted its focus to more contemporary sporting goods and a wider array of apparel for men and women.


Link

[allalone]

45. ah, thank ye

[NashVegas]

51. Oxford Shirts and Polos Aren't Sexy Enough to Get Teens In the Door

It's brilliant marketing, really. The clothes they sell are super-conservative.

[Blue_Tires]

48. headslap...

and this is MY local friendly police force, boys and girls.....

[Javaman]

52. "You could still pretty much see the rest of the breast."

oh for the love of fucking christ!!

So there we have it folks, our morality police are out in force and making sure our eyes don't burn from their sockets.

You know we all get dress and undressed with the lights off.

Handmaids Tale anyone?

So, the store manager is the one that will go to jail and not the company?

There is just so many things wrong with this on so many levels I don't know where to even begin!

:banghead:

[Swede]

53. Shocking!

[ChickMagic]

65. Hey!

I quite clearly see 2 boobs in that picture.

[primavera]

85. Yeah, but only the one in the foreground is obscene. n/t

[Lorien]

54. There's barely even crack there, let alone buttocks:

Must be something else about the image that has the Puritans knickers in a twist.

[Lorien]

57. Oh, Ch*st on a trailer hitch! Here's the girl:

THAT'S offensive???

:crazy: :crazy: :crazy: :crazy: :crazy:

[Pacifist Patriot]

59. Nah, just a stupid way to sell clothing in my opinion.

I don't think they are even very good photographs in terms of composition and lighting. Ho hum on that count.

Much ado about nothing. I howled when I saw the post about the Virginia state seal on the flag. More boobage there.

[Lorien]

60. Well, it is that. Body lotions or gym memberships maybe,

but not clothing. They aren't spectacular photos, but they aren't bad either. I just think that repugs are desperately reaching for stuff to be outraged about these days since they INSIST on being blind to the REAL obscenities out there.

[Pacifist Patriot]

64. Cannot argue with that!

they INSIST on being blind to the REAL obscenities out there. Amen!

[Carni]

75. I don't see the topless component??

How is the girl *topless*??

As to the pants/backside showing...THAT is what they are in a snit about?

This is just plain stupid IMO -- they look like typical kids trolling around in the summer to me!

[MissB]

76. They're selling clothes?

:rofl: Between the pic you posted and the one of the girl, I have to again ask if they're selling clothes, since there aren't really any pictured in those ads.

But the real answer is that sex sells. So yeah, they're selling overpriced clothes to kids who simply must have a bit of the forbidden fruit.

[rocktivity]

55. A&F sells CLOTHES?

But their models wear so few of them!

:evilgrin:
rocknation

[Betty]

56. John Ashcroft? Is that you?

Is he the "citizen" who complained?

[MarkInLA]

66. I'd like to know what Europeans and Canadians think when they see news like this (n/t)

[HuffleClaw]

67. this Canadian...

...finds it pretty comical.

[MarkInLA]

68. I'm not surprised

Isn't is amazing how Canada has become to be seen as a "wild-eyed, liberal country" by so many Americans?

Same with the U.S. compared to the U.K. It used to be that the UK - especially England - was seen as a buttoned-down, prim and proper country. Now, I can't believe how open-minded and liberal the UK seems compared to the U.S., especially in the area of human sexuality.

[sarcasmo]

71. When do they come for my Porn?

NAZI'S!

[superconnected]

72. What are they under, sharia law there?

[rumpycrunch]

74. Won't somebody please think of the children!!!

But don't think of the children while they're wearing low-rider jeans. That's offensive!!

[NutmegYankee]

77. BREAKING NEWS: Beach Police drop charges against Abercrombie & Fitch

VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (WAVY.com) -- Virginia Beach police tell WAVY.com the officer who issued the citation had probably cause, but since they feel there is not enough evidence to get a conviction in court, the department is dropping the charges.

A spokesperson for Abercrombie & Fitch issued a statement today basically saying that city officials greatly overreacted to photos which led to a police officer issuing a citation against the manager of their store at Lynnhaven Mall.

In the statement, spokesperson Tom Lennox said: "The marketing images in question show less skin than you see any summer day at the beach. And certainly less than the plumber working on your kitchen sink. This is an incredible over reaction by city officials that would be comical except for its potentially serious legal implications. We will pursue our legal rights aggressively and fully expect to prevail."

WAVY.com spoke with Va. Beach Mayor Meyera Oberndorf. She said the police officer who issued the ticket may have misinterpreted the ordinace.

http://www.wavy.com/global/story.asp?s=7814265

[tabasco]

82. The officer did NOT have probable cause to arrest.

I hope they sue the dumb asses for false arrest.

[NutmegYankee]

83. They would never admit it.

I hope A&F and the manager press this one home.

[tabasco]

87. The photographs are the only evidence.

There is no way a reasonable officer could believe those photographs are obscene. This was just simple harassment IMO.

[NutmegYankee]

90. He was probably just a Pat Robertson follower.

They do their un-American anti-freedom acts for the same reason a dog licks its balls.

[GinaMaria]

78. Any publicity is good

Stuff like this just makes more people notice A and F. People are loony. A and F are sitting back laughing all the way to the bank. Their ad guys are wondering what racy photos to shoot next to keep this kind of buzz going.

[otherlander]

79. OMG BOOBS!!!

DUCK AND COVER!


Skin
Honestly
Is
Really
Terrifying?

[AroundtheBend]

80. Fascism

is on the rise in America I see.

[and-justice-for-all]

91. NOT ASS CHEEKS AND BOOBS!!!!!! Those EVIL BASTARDS!

Vets are living on the streets and several million people do not have access to health care(Yeah, I'm talkin' about the States)and these morons want to piss and moan about tits and ass!!