Terry said:
> The sailing version of the Swiss knife has a locking blade. In fact many of
> the sailing knives are like this. It is considered a safety feature.
>
> Julia
I am amazed that locking is illegal, I would certainly regard it as a
safety feature.
TerryJ
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Sniper replies:
You wouldn't if you were facing the sharp end of it!
The reason locking knives are illegal is they are capable of being used far more offensively than a folding pocketknife.
There are many examples of wrongly held beliefs in this thread. Most refer to what is and is not an offensive weapon.
An offensive weapon is:
"any article made or adapted for use for causing injury to the person, or intended by the person having it with him for such use by him or by some other person."
The relevant statute states:
"Any person who without lawful authority or reasonable excuse, the proof whereof shall lie on him, has with him in any public place any offensive weapon shall be guilty of an offence.
Thus any thing can be an offensive weapon dependant on the intent of the person in control of the article at the time.
Some items are classed as offensive weapons by statute. Among those so listed are Lock Knifes and Telescopic Batons.
If the original post is to be believed then the person described had committed two offences by having those articles with him in a public place. A vehicle is a public place for the purpose of this act unless it is a dwelling IE a motor home.
I think however there is some cause to doubt that the described event actually took place. There are errors in the procedure and execution of the search and station procedure as described which I find difficult to reconcile. Other things I find hard to believe are the references to his going down for six months. Yes it's possible but highly unlikely that one would go to prison for such an offence, I can't believe that any officer would put forward such a possibility if he had any time in service.
The writer makes many references to standard procedures as if they are designed to reflect on him personally in an attempt to degrade him as a person. Such procedures are not uncommon and can be gleaned from many TV shows.
The time scale for the whole event is very short. According to the writer he was stopped at 11:30am and by 12:20pm was resting in his cell. Having booked in numerous prisoners, rubbish, it would be a miracle if a complete search, transportation, and station procedure could be completed in such a short time especially if the Sergeant had to arrange a solicitor to call for the detained person.
The reactions to this persons alleged needles are somewhat extreme. Whilst I concede that some officers are less than prudent on the street, I do not for one second think that any officer would react to these very minor and farcical attempts to raise the hackles. Frankly the quips stated are so low on the scale they wouldn't even raise an eyebrow.
The writer then goes on to attack the terrorism act, the government CPSO's and the police whilst stating we are subject to harsher repressive laws than were in force during WW2.
I think there is more going on here than someone complaining about mistreatment, it smacks of a political statement wrapped up in the form of righteous indignation.
Sniper Ends
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bus
