UK: Police Can Now Arrest for Any Offense

[kpete]

Sunday :: January 01, 2006
UK: Police Can Now Arrest for Any Offense
A new law went into effect in Great Britain today, allowing police to arrest for every offense, no matter how trivial:

Police are to be given sweeping powers to arrest people for every offence, including dropping litter, failure to wear a seat belt and other minor misdemeanours.

The measures, which come into force on Jan 1, are the biggest expansion in decades of police powers to deprive people of their liberty. At present, officers can generally arrest people if they suspect them of committing an offence which carries at least five years in prison. They will now have the discretion to detain someone if they suspect any offence and think that an arrest is "necessary".

This reminds me of Rudy Giuiliani's program to clean up Times Square and other areas by arresting the squeegee men that wanted to clean your car windows. It's taking the broken windows theory of policing to new and dangerous heights.
http://www.talkleft.com/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2005/12/29/narrest29.xml&sSheet=/portal/2005/12/29/ixportaltop.html

[Aimah]

1. It will probably be used to profile and arrest.

Kind of like driving while black. In the UK it will be jay-walking while Arab.

[twenty4blackbirds]

2. '...while being of similar appearance of an Arab'

c.f. the Brazilian guy that got shot, for wearing a bulky jacket in summer.

[Rex]

3. America and the UK

Two countries that used to stand for freedom and liberty.

[AX10]

4. America used to stand for "freedom and liberty"...

Britain never did.

[Cronus Protagonist]

5. You got it right .

Britain has never been for civil liberties. I left there because it was a police state 20 years ago and it's more like the Soviet Union now, IMHO.

Educate a Freeper Today!
Buttons, Stickers and Fridge Magnets made in America for brainy people
http://brainbuttons.com/home.asp?stashid=13

[melody]

7. In both cases, I love the country and hate the government

The Anglo fascists are one with BushCo. I'm afraid we're as bad off as our brothers and sisters across the pond.

[mr blur]

9. You know, it's hardly worth responding to you.

I'm just fascinated that you know so much about Britain. Wouldn't you be more at home over with the "America is the shining beacon of liberty" brigade over at FR? Next you'll be pointing out that you "saved our asses" back in WW2. Ah well, enjoy life in the Land of the Free before they come for you, too.

[Conservativesux]

10. "Most Americans dont deserve America": Dem Radio Host Bernie Ward.

He is correct too.

[Conservativesux]

6. Its in the works right here now. Welcome to Fascist America, folks.

"Officer Friendly" isn't so friendly anymore.

I suggest that we all start deciding how we are going to deal with this before things get much worse.

This isnt the America that we fought the Nazi so hard for not that
long ago and lots of good Americans died in that war.

Lets all remember that in this new year.

[Jeffersons Ghost]

8. Guess what they WON"T have, I suspect...

What England lacks, just like the US, is the space and funding to process these arrests. Admittedly, I'm just guessing, when it comes to over-crowded English courts and prisons but I read plenty about the issues, here in America. I hear about early paroles of violent people all the time due the problem. I just hope they're not going to fill up jails and courts with peace-loving political types while setting the more dangerous element loose on society. BTW, fellow posters, bashing England as a whole falls into the "do unto others, etc." catagory. Bashing their govt. and it's support of an unreasonable war WE started is quite another matter.