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Car Incident in Liverpool

Vixen

Penultimate Amazing
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From BBC News:

  • A car collided with a number of pedestrians on Water Street just after 18:00, according to Merseyside Police
  • The force says a 53-year-old man from the Liverpool area has since been arrested, but it is unclear if he is thought to be the driver of the vehicle involved in the incident
  • Merseyside Police has not yet released details of the extent of any injuries suffered or whether there have been any fatalities
  • A number of tents have been set up inside the police cordon along Water Street and the surrounding area
  • Water Street is near the Strand, where moments before the incident occurred Liverpool FC paraded the Premier League trophy
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I caught a glimpse of this on Twitter and now wish I hadn't.
 
The police are about to hold a live press conference here:

www.bbc.com

Liverpool parade latest: Man, 53, arrested after car ploughs into crowd

Merseyside Police say the man is white, British and from the Liverpool area. It is not yet clear how many people are injured, or to what extent.
www.bbc.com www.bbc.com

Obviously, they would need to contact victims' families first before giving out too much information.


.
 
I stayed in Chapel St when in Liverpool recently, only a street away from this event. If I was there now, and as a Liverpool supporter, I would have joined the crowd.

It’s interesting that Merseyside police have declared this not to be a terrorist attack. I think deliberately driving a car into a crowd is an act of terrorism by definition.
 
Ron Obvious said:
How interesting that several news outlets felt it necessary to inform us that the suspect in this particular case is a "53 year old white British man".
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How interesting that several news outlets felt it necessary to accurately describe the person suspected of having perpetrated the crime.

It's not like there have ever been bad consequences resulting from inaccurate descriptions of suspects being spread about over social media and such.
 
junkshop said:
How interesting that several news outlets felt it necessary to accurately describe the person suspected of having perpetrated the crime.

It's not like there have ever been bad consequences resulting from inaccurate descriptions of suspects being spread about over social media and such.
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So every other time, when the suspect was not so described, the conclusion we can draw is....
 
Ron Obvious said:
The very fact they did mention it in this case makes those assumptions all but inevitable when they don't. Possibly not what was intended.
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Or, perhaps, because there have been recent situations where racist morons have made erroneous assumptions and acted on them, the authorities and/or the press have decided to be more specific.

Unfortunately not every vigilante is the world's greatest detective, with a no kill policy.
 
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lionking said:
It’s interesting that Merseyside police have declared this not to be a terrorist attack. I think deliberately driving a car into a crowd is an act of terrorism by definition.
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I'm inclined to agree, but I believe that formal definitions of terrorism require some kind of political purpose. That hasn't been demonstrated at this time.
 
arthwollipot said:
I'm inclined to agree, but I believe that formal definitions of terrorism require some kind of political purpose. That hasn't been demonstrated at this time.
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Per the CPS:
...The Terrorism Act 2000 defines terrorism, both in and outside of the UK, as the use or threat of one or more of the actions listed below, and where they are designed to influence the government, or an international governmental organisation or to intimidate the public. The use or threat must also be for the purpose of advancing a political, religious, racial or ideological cause.

The specific actions included are:

  • serious violence against a person;
  • serious damage to property;
  • endangering a person's life (other than that of the person committing the action);
  • creating a serious risk to the health or safety of the public or a section of the public; and
  • action designed to seriously interfere with or seriously to disrupt an electronic system...
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Presumably they believe the intent to be something other than these.
 
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Ron Obvious said:
Be consistent.
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You don't think they should reassess their approach when bad actors have demonstrated that they will take advantage of the situation to foment social and political unrest?

Actually, scratch that. Show me some evidence that this isn't consistent. Show me evidence that the UK Police/press haven't previously described arrested suspects by age, gender and ethnicity.
 
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junkshop said:
You don't think they should reassess their approach when bad actors have demonstrated that they will take advantage of the situation to foment social and political unrest?
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You don't have to be all that cynical to notice the eagerness to share racial characteristics in this case and compare it to the reluctance to do so in other cases and to draw conclusions from that.
 
junkshop said:
Per the CPS:


Presumably they believe the intent to be something other than these.
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I can see "intimidate the public" sticking, but from what I've been reading so far it may simply be an accident.

Les Winsper, 55, who witnessed the incident, said: “People started banging on the [car] windows. Then they smashed the windows and he’s panicked and put his foot down. He then hit someone and that person has gone in the air and he’s ploughed through the rest of them. I’ve never seen anything like it.”

...

He added: “I personally think he’s hit someone by mistake and then he’s put his foot down. It was the worst thing I’ve seen in my life, you see it on TV. That’s why all the kids are crying, because they witnessed it. I’m traumatised.”
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www.theguardian.com

Nearly 50 injured after car ploughs into crowd at Liverpool FC victory parade

Man arrested after city centre collision at end of club’s Premier League title celebrations
www.theguardian.com www.theguardian.com
 
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