'Pervy' private chat case springs back into life
'Most significant obscenity case this century'
Agentless Backup is Not a Myth
The prospect of a dramatic extension of the Obscene Publications Act is once more back on the agenda, as the Crown Prosecution Service last week re-opened a case in which an individual is accused of obscene publishing in respect of a private online chat.
The issue, described by one legal commenter as "the most significant obscenity case so far this century", centres on a prosecution originally brought in May of this year against Gavin Smith, of Swanscombe, whose log of a private online chat he had with another individual was deemed by Kent Police to be obscene.
When the case first came before magistrates, it was “discharged”: that is, Mr Smith’s lawyers argued at the time that there was no case to answer and at that time, both magistrates and CPS were inclined to agree.
The CPS have since received new evidence in this matter and, following a review, have decided to re-charge Smith. There will now be a hearing on 30 November when defence solicitors are again likely to argue that there is no case to answer – and the CPS will put the contrary view.
Watch this space for further developments. ®
COMMENTS
Thanks guys
I just love how my taxes are being used to erode my civil liberties while violent criminals are walking the streets, and in an in a period of austerity too. Great jobs there lads.
So yet another day & yet another increase in Police State moves :(
So now we also have outright Thoughtcrime. Oh wonderful :( ... Prosecuted for what is said in a private online chat log? WTF!? When words can be punished by police intervention its time to seriously worry about not what our society is becoming, but far worse, worry about what our society has already become.
When is enough, really, finally enough?
At this point, I cannot believe anyone would fail to see we are increasingly becoming a Police State, therefore anyone who says we are not a Police State, must in some way really be denying our Police State is bad. So either they are profoundly ignorant of the hidden danger of the relentless two faced Narcissistic bastards who constantly seek power over others who are creating the Police State or they are one of these two faced bastards who want a Police State. Either way they are the enemy within society we all have against us. They are like two sides of the same coin so to speak, the ignorant and the duplicitous who fool the ignorant. Both are the key ingredients a society needs to allow this Police State to grow without end and both are our enemy within.
?pervy? is not the half of it.
What's also interesting here is that a quick search will shed some light on the full charges.
Looks like this case has been carefully chosen to further erode our rights by creating a precedent. It contains a built-in defence to the chorus of disapproval using a 'but he was an X' technique; in a very similar manner to a recent case involving encryption.
That's currently injuncted, but eventually the judge will be asked to lift the ban and in a sad display of media management the authorities will 'reveal' the charges; the illiberal will begin a mass chant of 'think of the X' and our liberties take another knock.
IT infrastructure monitoring strategies
Agentless Backup is Not a Myth
Steps to Take Before Choosing a Business Continuity Partner
Enabling efficient data center monitoring
Requirements Checklist for Choosing a Cloud Backup and Recovery Service Provider
