Section 60 - Your Rights

[Turns8]

http://www.getreading.co.uk/news/s/2026331_royals_fans_insulted_by_transport_polices_fishing

[Row Z Royal]

Who's this Neil Maskell fellow? What a tw@t.

[Royal Lady]

He's only been supporting RFC for 15 years. What a plastic!!!

I'm going to make sure I point him out to the stewards at the Spurs game and make sure they check his pockets before noseying about in my bloody handbag.

[floyd__streete]

He's only been supporting RFC for 15 years. What a plastic!!!

He's not even a Reading fan; he supports Chelsea

[Royal Lady]

Let's get him at the next home game then.

[Compo's Hat]

It was a total joke - those of us at the back of the queue who questioned, grumbled and generally took the p*ss were ushered on our way by a nervous looking copper without having to go through the rigmarole of being searched. An absolute farce; either search us when you have stopped us or don't bother in the first place.

Neil Maskell, a Royals fan for more than 15 years, was also searched. He said: “The officer who searched me said it was because Leeds were playing Millwall.

Shoddy journalism from the EP once again

[Forbury Lion]

Can we insist on the police officer carrying out the search being of a specified gender.... e.g female officer for the women?

If so, can I as a man insist on a female officer carrying out any search and if so can I insist on her being reasonably fit and attractive?

[southstand67]

Hmmm, this makes interesting reading. Unless I've missed a post pointing this out already; I have to say I take comfort in the fact that there are stop and search taking place, if I were to go to a match with a rucksack on my back I hope it would be searched. Have the July 7th bombings been forgotten already? We are living in a society of extremists and nutters that want to impose their views on you, and although bombing the Madejski Stadium sounds farfetched, who remembers the Docklands bombings, the IRA campaigns of the 70's etc? Places you would never have thought of being targetted. Let's just remember this next time we go to a match.

[biscuitsrus]

Can we insist on the police officer carrying out the search being of a specified gender.... e.g female officer for the women?

If so, can I as a man insist on a female officer carrying out any search and if so can I insist on her being reasonably fit and attractive?

With a gentle but firm handshake!

[Turns8]

Hmmm, this makes interesting reading. Unless I've missed a post pointing this out already; I have to say I take comfort in the fact that there are stop and search taking place, if I were to go to a match with a rucksack on my back I hope it would be searched. Have the July 7th bombings been forgotten already? We are living in a society of extremists and nutters that want to impose their views on you, and although bombing the Madejski Stadium sounds farfetched, who remembers the Docklands bombings, the IRA campaigns of the 70's etc? Places you would never have thought of being targetted. Let's just remember this next time we go to a match.

So why then did the Police choose to search football shirt wearing fans, some of which had no 'baggage' yet other rail users were left to walk freely through the search carrying rucksacks potentially filled with bombs and the like!!! well you never know do you...

[Seal]

Can't see what the fuss is about really. It's all about probability. I travel on the tube every day, and always see people getting stopped and searched. They tend to focus on certain demographics, that are more likely to be a terrorist threat. In the 80's they were white and Irish, now they just happen to be young Asian males. It's efficiency of resource. There are a million tube passengers a day, any threat of terrorism is 98% likely to come from one sub sector, so lets focus our limited resources on targeting that sub sector.

The same logic applies to BTP: There's been an increase in violent incidents on the trains at weekends. The most likely cause of this is football fans. Let's stop and search some football fans. The only flaw in their plan is that they failed to realise (or more likely act upon the fact) that the most likely trouble makers won't actually be wearing colours, so they were searching the wrong football fans. However, I don't think you can argue with their logic.

[Hoop Blah]

However, I don't think you can argue with their logic.

You just did!

[Seal]

However, I don't think you can argue with their logic.

You just did!

No, that was their application of the logic! No one likes a pedant.

[weybridgewanderer]

Can I just ask also, why it is that at every home game at the Mad Stad and at at every away game I have been to, female and male stewards have looked in my handbag, but I have never seen them body search a male supporter? Do I have the right to refuse them looking into my handbag if they are not looking in male supporters' pockets or anything?

No- because that's down to ground regulations and is a condition of entry which you agree to as part of the civil contract when you purchase the ticket from RFC.

You do have the right to refuse them looking into your handbag - but they have the right to refuse you entry to their premises.

So why aren't male supporters all asked to submit to a body search and/or empty their pockets or bags that they are carrying??

#

i have been asked to open an overnight bag when entering many stadium, often as a "home" fan

i have been "frisked" on a number of occasions when entering a ground as an away supporter

[bobby1413]

Can we insist on the police officer carrying out the search being of a specified gender.... e.g female officer for the women?

If so, can I as a man insist on a female officer carrying out any search and if so can I insist on her being reasonably fit and attractive?

Yes you can.

Although, an officer of any gender is allowed to do a preliminary search, e.g. a very quick pat down. If a female needs searching, then a female officer should do the search - unless that person asks otherwise. If they are a transgender person, they should be asked what they feel most comfortable with.

Re: the last few posts - As I said in a previous post, there is a fine line between discrimination and intelligence-led policing. I don't believe the supporters were discriminated against. That's my opinion, although I wasn't there so don't know exactly what happened.

[floyd__streete]

Re: the last few posts - As I said in a previous post, there is a fine line between discrimination and intelligence-led policing. I don't believe the supporters were discriminated against. That's my opinion, although I wasn't there so don't know exactly what happened.

For someone who wasn't there you certainly have a lot to say on this subject. To call this operation intelligence-led is laughable; stopping folk who displayed football colours and allowing anyone else to walk merrily by was - at best -a haphazard approach, made even more futile by allowing those of us who voiced their disapproval to go through without even being searched! Here is some intelligence for you; folk who tend to cause violent disorder in and around football matches are exceptionally unlikely to display team colours when doing so.

If, as has been alluded to, BTP were merely taking an approach to try and reassure members of the public that they are doing all in their power to take pre-emptive strikes to nullify disorder - high visibility policing, if you will - then by stopping a certain demographic of match-going football supporters they were in fact discriminating against law abiding citizens for the reasons mentioned in my last sentence in the above paragraph.

[Hugo Boss]

Whilst I can kind of see why people were a bit miffed at having a quick search, I do tend to believe that if you aint got nothing to hide, why worry??

I do fear for the health of people that get all wound up about things that aint really all that harmful.

[Dirk Gently]

Whilst I can kind of see why people were a bit miffed at having a quick search, I do tend to believe that if you aint got nothing to hide, why worry??

I do fear for the health of people that get all wound up about things that aint really all that harmful.

Maybe, but where exactly do you draw the line on what is fair and what is not?

[Turns8]

Whilst I can kind of see why people were a bit miffed at having a quick search, I do tend to believe that if you aint got nothing to hide, why worry??

I do fear for the health of people that get all wound up about things that aint really all that harmful.

Maybe, but where exactly do you draw the line on what is fair and what is not?

I was just annoyed about the approach taken tbh and how they were trying their hardest to be as unhelpful and dis-courteous...i had nothing to hide so you'd expect a little bit of respect from them...and they wonder why people get so 'funny' with them

Also the fact that I didn't get a sticker or a badge for passing the test successfully angered me... if they were handing out stickers/badges with 'safe as' on then it would have made my day...would have gone so far as offering them a fruit pastile for all their hard work and efforts...

[Hugo Boss]

Whilst I can kind of see why people were a bit miffed at having a quick search, I do tend to believe that if you aint got nothing to hide, why worry??

I do fear for the health of people that get all wound up about things that aint really all that harmful.

Maybe, but where exactly do you draw the line on what is fair and what is not?

I think it's fair enough to be stopped and searched just in case. Granted, the chances of a shirt-wearing supporter carrying any form of weaponry is extremely remote but you never know Dirk. Someone might look like a decent, honest supporter but in this day in age I wouldn't put it past the odd "normal" person to carry a weapon.

Don't get me wrong, as I said, I can see why people would be miffed especially decent, law abiding folk but at the same time, there's nothing wrong IMHO with the odd Police excercise like this.