Author Topic: Police to the rescue  (Read 8401 times)

peejayess

  • Newbie
  • *
  • Posts: 23
  • Noli illegitimi te carborundum
    • View Profile
Police to the rescue
« on: May 14, 2023, 04:21:07 PM »
Detailed account in NaturistsUK on Facebook from Richard Collins about being busted while naked in Hastings (which he does a lot of) by an off-duty Met policeman. Assorted argy-bargy occurred, resolved by the local police turning up, explaining to the Met officer the error of his ways, and offering to make a formal complaint to the Met on Richard’s behalf.

John Wood

  • NAG Retired Management
  • Jr. Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 51
    • View Profile
Re: Police to the rescue
« Reply #1 on: May 27, 2023, 07:40:36 AM »
It's such a shame that we have to go through all this hassle before the police finally accept that we are doing nothing wrong.

MrJorrox1956

  • Newbie
  • *
  • Posts: 15
    • View Profile
Re: Police to the rescue
« Reply #2 on: May 27, 2023, 04:20:33 PM »
It's such a shame that we have to go through all this hassle before the police finally accept that we are doing nothing wrong.

It is annoying when law abiding citizens going about their lawful business in a lawful way are interfered with by overmighty servants, however, in this context, the question is whether it is 'The Police', as a group, or just those who see the uniform, whether they are in it and on duty or off duty and out of it, as the right to impose themselves on others, on any excuse, that is the problem.  I haven't read the accounts (no Facebook account) so don't know the details, however, Hastings police do seem to have been helpful, even to the extent of a complaint against the Met officer, which police force is again being shown to be unfit for purpose.  The issue seems to be not so much that some police officers seem not, or refuse, to understand the law and the rights of citizens but that the way we are all policed needs a very serious rethink, from which society as a whole benefits, ourselves included. 

John Paine

  • NAG Retired Management
  • Jr. Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 86
    • View Profile
Re: Police to the rescue
« Reply #3 on: May 28, 2023, 03:22:00 PM »
Richard Collins is a naturist who has a long history of promoting being naked in public. The fact that Sussex Police officers are more aware of the law relating to public nudity than a Metropolitan Police Service officer from London is no surprise. NAG faced the same issues at our naturist picnic at The Welsh Harp reservoir in Brent, London, in the summer of 2022. On that occasion local Met police officers responded to a call from a supervisor of school pupils because they 'witnessed' the naked picnickers.

We explained to the two officers what the law says and gave them a copy of the Police Guidelines on responding to reports of public nudity. They had never seen them before, despite the Guidelines being issued to all Chief Cnstables in 2018, and took them back to their local station for their colleagues to see.

NAG is currently in a dialogue with the Commissoner of the Met Police, Sir Mark Rowley, about the continued lack of awareness of his officers as to the existence of the Police Guidelines. In response to NAG raising the issue this year we have been told that internal discussions are now taking place within the Met training division on this matter.

peejayess

  • Newbie
  • *
  • Posts: 23
  • Noli illegitimi te carborundum
    • View Profile
Re: Police to the rescue
« Reply #4 on: May 28, 2023, 05:07:15 PM »
We shouldn't be surprised, nor too quick to blame, the frontline police officer who doesn't know the law on public nudity - I'm sure they know the laws they have deal with day in, day out, but for most of them a nude confrontation will be a vanishingly rare event. Hastings police know the rules because Richard Collins has been there a while to educate them; Nottingham police know the rules but John Wood still appears to have trouble with them from time to time. By the nature of their work one would expect the police to be suspicious first, as long as they understand the error of their ways once explained to them; however forbearing people tend to be towards nakedness, I'm sure the general presumption is still that it's against the law in some way.

peejayess

  • Newbie
  • *
  • Posts: 23
  • Noli illegitimi te carborundum
    • View Profile
Re: Police to the rescue
« Reply #5 on: June 01, 2023, 11:58:51 AM »
Richard Collins' story ha s now been picked up by the Daily Telegraph and the Daily Mail, among others.

John Wood

  • NAG Retired Management
  • Jr. Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 51
    • View Profile
Re: Police to the rescue
« Reply #6 on: June 06, 2023, 05:13:29 PM »
Nottingham police know the rules but John Wood still appears to have trouble with them from time to time.

Just for the record, the police have visited my home 15 times over the past 4 years following complaints from members of the public about me being seen naked in Colwick Woods. Below is a list of the dates, details of the police officers who attended and which police station they were based.

21 June 2019 Sneinton Station
CPO9796 Pilarek
CPO2718 Wilson
PC4296 Mason

13 August 2019 Carlton Station
3336 Shajait
2365 Hawrylak

5 April 2020 Sneinton
4296 Mason

17 July 2020 St Anns
4559 Turale
1772 Rossington
2900 Notely

13 August 2020 St Anns
3689 Browne

17 of September 2020 St Anns
3689 Browne

7 April 2021 Jubilee House Police Station at Daybrook
PC 3994
PC 2827

13 May 2021 Sneinton Police Station
Sergeant Hunter

26 June 2021 St Anns
3984 Murray
1624 Taylor

7 Sept 2021
PC Cooper (collar number not recorded.)

14 October 2021 Beeston Police Station
14132 PC Jason Limb

22 October 2021 Radford Police Station.
2256 PC Ball

16 June 2022 Sneinton Police Station.
Sergeant  Richard Hunter and Laura Bland

13 October 2022 Jubilee house.
3770 Dumbar
2379 Doherty

22 December 2022  Sneinton Police Station.
Sergeant Richard Hunter
« Last Edit: June 09, 2023, 04:37:56 PM by John Wood »

MrJorrox1956

  • Newbie
  • *
  • Posts: 15
    • View Profile
Re: Police to the rescue
« Reply #7 on: June 06, 2023, 09:37:39 PM »
Sergeant Hunter might reasonably be expected to understand the law by now.

peejayess

  • Newbie
  • *
  • Posts: 23
  • Noli illegitimi te carborundum
    • View Profile
Re: Police to the rescue
« Reply #8 on: June 07, 2023, 05:56:52 PM »
I'm sure they understand it, but they probably hope John will give up and allow them a quiet life from people who don't even believe the police when they say there's nothing illegal happening. On current showing I'd say JW has the greater staying power ...

John Wood

  • NAG Retired Management
  • Jr. Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 51
    • View Profile
Re: Police to the rescue
« Reply #9 on: June 07, 2023, 07:35:36 PM »
I agree with Peejayess. Nottinghamshire police know the law but they are just trying to pile on the pressure to intimidate me into stopping. They will give up before I do.

MrJorrox1956

  • Newbie
  • *
  • Posts: 15
    • View Profile
Re: Police to the rescue
« Reply #10 on: June 08, 2023, 11:32:12 PM »
Have you thought about pursuing a case for harassment?

John Wood

  • NAG Retired Management
  • Jr. Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 51
    • View Profile
Re: Police to the rescue
« Reply #11 on: June 09, 2023, 04:43:21 PM »
Have you thought about pursuing a case for harassment?

As I'm a BN member, the BN Legal Team have tried 4 times to bring 4 seperate complaints against Nottinghamshire Police for harassment. Needless to say, nothing ever became of it.