Image © Ron Tear 2007 - Used with permission

Powers of Stop and Search (UK)

Unfortunately in the current age of tabloid press and moral panic there is an enemy under every bed. In fact if the press are to be believed the general public is composed solely of sinister people we are to all to fear and distrust (for our own good and their circulation...).

Sadly for photography the collateral damage of this culture of paranoia has been a certainty in the eyes of many of the public that any photographer in any public place is either a paedophile or a terrorist. It would seem in the eyes of the angry mob that there is no possible other motive for taking pictures in public places. The magazines heavily illustrated with photographs tell them this so it must be true. Right?

This misplaced paranoia has led to a terrible public backlash against street photography. What used to only arouse peoples curiosity and often their cooperation, now causes suspicion or hostility. Occasionally it also causes a call to the police from the general public. It makes no sense at all but sadly that is the current climate for us street photographers.

I personally have no memory at all of any case where a pedophile or terrorist was caught because they where openly taking pictures with some form of rangefinder or SLR!? It's hardly discrete after all. In fact if I was one of the above i'd consider street photography possibly last on my list of low profile things to do.

So while the hostility we can sometimes now face makes no sense at all it is the reality we have to work in. In fact I can guarantee that you will on occasion be stopped by the public (Read: Angry mob) and challenged. Possibly as a result of this you may be stopped and questioned by the police or even searched by the police.

It's at times like this it's very good to know what you are going to say in advance. I will endeavour to indicate this now in rational terms.

In the case of members of the public it's simple. In the case of the police it gets a little more complex but they do have clearly defined rules of what they can and cannot do and these are useful to know to make life easier for both you and them.

The Public

In the case of the public I think if you are open and honest about what you do, stand your ground and are confident as to your rights things will go well every time. I am often asked by people curious what I am up to or challenged as to my right to take a picture of some situation. I find three things help a great deal:

1. Be clear and comfortable with why you are taking pictures before you start. If you are hesitant or sneaky people will react with suspicion. Mentioning historical street scenes being taken by people like you is a good start. I often use the analogy of taking pictures today for tomorrows photographic archive. Digital photography is also useful as you can if you wish show what you photographed. Be careful with this approach as some people if very hostile may make a grab for the camera. It would be a shame for them to charge them with theft, assault or criminal damage.
2. It's useful to have a business card even if you are not a full time professional photographer. It makes you seem more professional and to some people that's reassuring. It's also a quick way to sell a print if the people who engage you are tourists. I've sold a few prints this way.
3. Be sure of your right to take photographs in a public place. If people are very hostile or begin to be physical explain that this is assault and point out you are within your rights to call the police. Your rights are essentially simple. In a public place you can take pictures as you wish.

Your rights are covered in superb detail at the following site: Sirmo.co.uk. I summarised below but think the document at the link is excellent and worth a thorough read.

1. It is not ever illegal to take pictures in a public place in the UK, irrespective of what is going on.
2. Children have no more right to privacy than an adult does when in a public place.
3. Any member of the public has no powers to demand ID from anyone under any circumstances.
4. Forcible deletion or removal of images or destruction of film from your camera is an assault.
5. Detaining you and taking your camera would constitute an unlawful imprisonment or theft and both would include an assault.
6. Even child protection officers (CPO's) have no right to stop you or demand ID only the police may do so as I will detail later.

The Police

I'll now move on to the rights of the police. The police have the right to stop and question you or to stop and search you under the PACE Code A (Police And Criminal Evidence). There are strong guidelines as to what they can and can't do as detailed in their 85 page guidelines found on the home office web site. They can be summarised as follows.

The police may with reasonable grounds stop question you. If stopped they must provide you with a stop slip detailing the following information:

1. The date, time and place of the encounter.
2. If the person is in a vehicle, its registration number.
3. The reason why the officer questioned that person.
4. The person’s self-defined ethnic background.
5. The outcome of the encounter.

If the police have reasonable grounds of suspicion they may additionally search you. These grounds giving power to search are clearly defined and detailed in the home office guidelines as follows.

1. It must have an objective basis in fact, information and/or intelligence.
2. It should normally be linked to accurate and current intelligence or information.
3. It can be based on some level of generalisation stemming from the behaviour of a person in a particular situation.
4. It can be based on a distinctive item of clothing or other means of indicating membership of a group or gang, combined with reliable information or intelligence on the carrying of weapons or controlled drugs.

There are also safety clauses built into the guidance given by the home office to prevent abuse of power and to better define for the police officer what he should be doing and what is reasonable grounds.

1. Reasonable suspicion cannot be justified or supported by personal factors alone, or by generalisations or stereotypical images.
2. The effective use of ‘reasonable suspicion’ is likely to be based on a range of factors.
   (This helps prevent abuses of power and increases public confidence.)
3. Race equality duty makes it unlawful for police officers to discriminate on the grounds of race, colour, ethnic origin, nationality or national origins when using their powers.The stop and search powers must be used fairly, responsibly, with respect for the people being searched and without unlawful discrimination.

The use of stop and search powers was designed to combat the carrying of concealed weapons or incidents of extreme public disorder such as football hooliganism it was not designed to stop you pursuing your lawful business in the form of taking pictures. Examples of reasonable grounds for stop and search are listed next. The area you are in must have been designated a stop and search area by a policeman ranked inspector or above under Section 60 of the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act. Examples of what may trigger activation of stop and search powers is:

1. Violence between particular groups.
2. Previous incidents of violence at or connected with particular events or locations.
3. A major increase in robberies at knife-point in a small area.
4. Reports that individuals are regularly carrying weapons in a particular area.

To seek reassurance that I had correctly interpreted the police stop and search powers I contacted the Police National Legal Database (PNLD) to ask their opinion on how stop and search should be used. They kindly provided the following information:

The guide is clear in that there must be some reason specific to an individual on a particular occasion that the person is in unlawful possession of an article or is a terrorist. It would be unlawful to target any type of group - or even an individual with previous convictions. It has to be a specific suspicion and would have to be backed up by some reason to support that suspicion. - PNLD (16th Oct 2007)

The PNLD also provided the following useful Question and Answer links:

On what grounds can police stop and search me?
What if I refuse to be searched by the police?
Can I have a copy of the form the police officer filled in when he searched me?
How do police have to deal with stops?
Can the police stop and search me more than once a day?

I am very grateful for their contribution and also reassured by the implication that photographers should not be targeted simply for doing what they love.

In Summary

What I have gleaned from my study of the police stop and search powers is that not all stops should need to result in a search. Also a search is not lawful unless clearly defined grounds for reasonable suspicion have been met. If a search breaches guidelines the police officer is liable for disciplinary action.

It is clearly stated all searches should be conducted in a respectful and polite manner. I would add that this should be mutual respect as I consider the police to do a difficult job very well and it is simply courteous to respect them as they do this. Remember that you are representing the photographers who follow you so please try and make a good impression for all of our sakes.

If you object to being searched in public with other members of the public watching you may let the police officer know this and he should respect your wishes. The police officer may not take your camera without a warrant. It is not a concealed weapon or similar which is covered under stop and search powers.

If their are any policemen or policewomen reading this I'd love to hear your thoughts and experiences on the matter of public photography likewise if there are any photographers with experience of this issue, be it positive or negative please mail me.

The first article about photography and the law can be found on this page

Thanks also to fellow photographer Ron Tear for use of the excellent picture of a policeman for the article.