Stupid or innocent?

[Eki]

I just visited a hardware store. On the parking lot was two police cars around one civilian car. There were also few policemen and some kids you British would probably call chavs and chavettes standing around the car. One of the chavs was inside the store shopping and a policeman was waiting him at the check-out counter. Among the stuff the chav was going to buy was a crowbar. The policeman said, "That's a burglar tool. I won't let you buy it. Take it back". Was the chav stupid, innocent or maybe he just didn't know the police was waiting?

[Hondo]

Sounds like a pre-emptive crowbar strike.

But seriously, possibly the policeman at the counter knew this individual already had a history of burglary or possibly someone in the store heard him talking about breaking in to something.

Are crowbars illegal in Finland?

What were you doing at the hardware store?

[Eki]

Are crowbars illegal in Finland?
Not normally, but I guess the policeman wasn't waiting for him for nothing.



What were you doing at the hardware store?
I have the right to remain silent ;)

[CarlMetro]

What were you doing at the hardware store?


Stocking up on crowbars for his next job ;)

Like Fiero 5.7 says I would think that the policeman had reason to believe that the crowbar was going to be used for illegal means, either from an overheard conversation or by previous reputation.

Whatever the reason though it seems a bit pointless to stop unless the policeman is going to follow the kid around all day and stop him purchasing from another store.

[LotusElise]

A kid has no legitimate need for a crowbar.
The police probably knew this individual anyway and he may have caused problems with crowbars before.

[CarlMetro]

A kid has no legitimate need for a crowbar.

How do you know that? For all any of us know he may well have had a perfectly ligitimate use for it. I got my first crowbar when I was about thirteen because I wanted to pull some very large and old nails from some recycled timber I was using to make a coffee table.

[Knock-on]

How do you know that? For all any of us know he may well have had a perfectly ligitimate use for it. I got my first crowbar when I was about thirteen because I wanted to pull some very large and old nails from some recycled timber I was using to make a coffee table.

Unfortunately, the recycled timber was part of a display stand at the local Jewelers :D

[LotusElise]

I have never owned my own crowbar. When I needed tools at that age, I borrowed my dad's.
For pulling out nails, I would normally use the back of a claw hammer anyway.

If it was an industrious kid like yourself and not a mini-thug, why was he with a pack of mates when he bought it?

[A.F.F.]

He wasn't one of "the Daltons", was he?

[Captain VXR]

He/it probably goes round people's houses with a cowbar and a metal baseball bat, dumb chav.

[schmenke]

Well, from the way Eki describes, the situation does seem less than inocent... Why would a kid, with a group of his mates waiting outside, be purchasing a crowbar? :makr: I don't think that the police officer did anything wrong by questioning the kid's purchase.

[airshifter]

I think the cop was in the wrong.

If he felt the kids were up to something illegal, he could have verified it. In doing what he doing he assumed the kids were up to no good.

I once helped some people up the street from me break into their car to retrieve their keys. It would appear that we were up to no good, especially since the others had been drinking. In fact they knew they couldn't drive home, and only decided to break in and get the keys once they realized they needed them to enter their home once the taxi got them there.

[Ian McC]

I was using to make a coffee table.

Handy lad when you were young then, can you knock me up some shelves please? :D

[vanillagirl85]

Is there legal precedent for this sort of thing? Though I agree that the kids were up to no good, is it ethically sound to preemptively arrest someone? Even overhearing a conversation where they planned to commit a crime could just be kids trying to impress other kids with big talk.

[schmenke]

Nobody was trying to arrest anybody. I don't see anything wrong with a police officer casually inquiring about a situation that may perceive to be suspicious.

[Eki]

Nobody was trying to arrest anybody.
It admittingly didn't look like an arrest situation. I'd imagine that if the police was going to arrest him, he wouldn't be as patient as waiting for the kid to pay his shoppings before escorting him to the car in question. Maybe they suspected the car was stolen or something

[schmenke]

Around here a kid can be arrested for buying a can of spray paint.