Don't mention buying Pyros!

[silent majority]

Tweeted by the FSF this afternoon;

@FSF_FairCop: Police use Section 73 of the Explosives Act 1875 to gain a search warrant to search a fans house after he mentioned buying #pyro on twitter

[Muttley]

Is possession actually a criminal offence?

Surely half the country is breaking the law this past few days if that was the case.

[silent majority]

It is, but only if you're a football supporter.

[Bentley Bullet]

The world's gone crackers.

[normal rules]

interesting. grounds to obtain search warrants for anything other than drugs (s23(3) misuse drugs act 1971) usually require authorities to convince a magistrate that they have reasonable grounds to believe (as opposed to suspect) that the property they seek (in this case explosives) will be found at the premises.

i would have love to have been a fly on the wall when the officer making the application convinced the magistrate that the explosives were indeed at this individuals home address. baring in mind this was based on a twitter feed.

wonder what the outcome was?

and for what its worth, i don't see the point in these items being brought to a football match. they obstruct view, affect people with asthma and generally cause concern re fire risk etc. 

i don't get people who think "i know, ill take a pyrotechnic to a football match and risk a three year ban"
just stupid.

[hoolahoop]

interesting. grounds to obtain search warrants for anything other than drugs (s23(3) misuse drugs act 1971) usually require authorities to convince a magistrate that they have reasonable grounds to believe (as opposed to suspect) that the property they seek (in this case explosives) will be found at the premises.

i would have love to have been a fly on the wall when the officer making the application convinced the magistrate that the explosives were indeed at this individuals home address. baring in mind this was based on a twitter feed.

wonder what the outcome was?

and for what its worth, i don't see the point in these items being brought to a football match. they obstruct view, affect people with asthma and generally cause concern re fire risk etc. 

i don't get people who think "i know, ill take a pyrotechnic to a football match and risk a three year ban"
just stupid.

I fully understand where you're coming from but there will always be folk who whether they know the consequences or not will grab those few seconds of insane fame. Streakers have been doing it for years but they of course don't endanger either themselves or those around them.
You will never stop this sort of thing whilst we now have such 'controlled' societies here it is becoming increasingly difficult to stand out in a crowd.

[BobG]

I've not come across the term 'pyro's' before. Are they bangers and whatnots from Bonfire Night? Roman Candles? I've got quite a few- it was chucking it down when we were going to let 'em off. Am I a criminal?

BobG

[silent majority]

And one of the Manchester Utd fans groups tweeted this too;

@redsaway: @FSF_FairCop Yep. GMP has admitted doing the same. Expect more of this in future.

[Muttley]

It is, but only if you're a football supporter.

Sounds like the police have pushed their luck on this one...

From the FSF's fact sheet:

Is it an offence for an adult to have a firework in their possession if they are not going to
a match?
No, it is not illegal for a person over 18 years to possess a firework, flare or smoke bomb, but it is illegal for a person over 18 years to let off the firework, flare or smoke bomb in a public place. A person over the age of 18 cannot legally be arrested for being in possession of a firework, flare or smoke bomb, other than when entering or attempting to enter a football match. For instance, the arrest of a football fan at a service station for possession of a smoke bomb in their car is an unlawful arrest unless the fan admits to the police officer that they intended to take the firework, flare or smoke bomb into the football ground later that day.

What does 'attempting to enter' a football ground mean?
The courts have decided that 'attempting to enter' means much more than a per
son who is searched at the turnstiles. Fans have been given a prison sentence for carrying a smoke bomb in their pocket when exiting the train station closest to the football ground, or when walking through the car park on the way to the football ground. A court is likely to decide that a fan who is in possession of a ticket and is close to the ground is ‘attempting to enter’.

http://www.fsf.org.uk/assets/Smoke-Bombs-Flares-and-Fireworks-Factsheet-for-FSF.pdf

[twinkletoes]

interesting. grounds to obtain search warrants for anything other than drugs (s23(3) misuse drugs act 1971) usually require authorities to convince a magistrate that they have reasonable grounds to believe (as opposed to suspect) that the property they seek (in this case explosives) will be found at the premises.

i would have love to have been a fly on the wall when the officer making the application convinced the magistrate that the explosives were indeed at this individuals home address. baring in mind this was based on a twitter feed.

wonder what the outcome was?

and for what its worth, i don't see the point in these items being brought to a football match. they obstruct view, affect people with asthma and generally cause concern re fire risk etc. 

i don't get people who think "i know, ill take a pyrotechnic to a football match and risk a three year ban"
just stupid.

I fully understand where you're coming from but there will always be folk who whether they know the consequences or not will grab those few seconds of insane fame. Streakers have been doing it for years but they of course don't endanger either themselves or those around them.
You will never stop this sort of thing whilst we now have such 'controlled' societies here it is becoming increasingly difficult to stand out in a crowd.

Reasonable grounds and public place are the key words here.