He had it coming..
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Quite right too! Terrible shirt, should have had the book thrown at him. Isn't it neutral and beige colours that's in this summer?Arrested for wearing a loud shirt in a built up area and for having eyes too close together.
Huh, the Hori Hori website not only says its a blade, but refers to the UK law and says keep it in a bag and out of sight! Guess he didn't read the instructions...
That particular blurb seems to be a new addition to the site since the article came out. Here’s the site from 10th July: https://web.archive.org/web/20250710005356/https://www.niwaki.com/hori-hori/#product_details
That said, it still had this disclaimer even previously: “Please note: By law, we are not permitted to sell a knife or blade to any person under the age of 18. By placing an order for one of these items you are declaring that you are 18 years of age or over. These items must be used responsibly and appropriately.” which makes it clear it’s a bladed article.
The article did "“They started asking questions, like if I was autistic or anything like that, asking me whether I’d ever been in the army, whether I told people I was in the army,” he said."
I think it was a positive point that they considered the possibility because there have been a lot of miscarriages of justice regarding autistic peoples encounters with the police, however they clearly mishandled it anyway. I would refer you to Chloe Hocking's thesis "The Experiences of Autistic Individuals in Police Custody" for which I was one of the research participants. Regardless however to pressure anybody to forego a solicitor is an old trick. If the police had thought he might be autistic, they botched it up big time, and in fact like a lot of police you would not want to know, exploit the fact to their advantage. Anyway to change the subject the Guardian has done a lot in the past to encourage the use of the hori hori as part of the mythos that anything Japanese is made of superior steel that can cut through the fabric of time and space itself.
Aah! Didn't see that. Guess it was police question as they thought he might have been acting out of normal behaviour (neuro divergence not neurotypical).
Dang! That Japanese gardening knife I got won't actually cut through time to a point where my garden is tidy without me actually having to do it?!!
Dang it! Now where is my receipt, it's going back.
I don't think that it's reasonable to expect the arresting officers, the station officers or even a duty solicitor to know of the Niwaki brand, let alone be aware of the company's marketing blurb.
I would, though, expect those people to be up to date with the relevant legislation and for duty solicitors (yes, I remember that the accused did not see one) to be up to date with the jurisprudence.
I know that station officers don't always follow procedure...
I was once bundled off to the station because somebody punched me in the face with absolutely no provocation, right in front of a line of police vans next to the Goodwin Fountain in Sheffield town centre. The coppers there didn't see the start of the incident, so bundled everybody into the vans for questioning at West Bar station. I was interviewed without the presence of a duty solicitor, but made a point of clearly declaring on the recorded interview that this was the case and that I had been denied access to the police doctor despite having a soft tissue wound and bleeding from the left eyeball... I was let out the next morning after sleeping in the cell overnight, never found out what happened after that.
I'm glad we're all agreed that any would be desperado is free to walk in public through the street, with two dangerous edged blades in immediate access, as long as they are carrying a basket and wearing a floral shirt.
Well, yes. As various people have pointed out, if the chap had put his tools in a bag, nobody would have called the Police.
Unless it’s a folding knife with a sub 3” blade. Company discretion usually just blanket enforces the prohibition, too much potential for hassle, but it’s not illegal.
Even the Post Office don’t apply their Age Verification to them, though I did have to screenshot both the legal blurb and their own rules to prove it to them.
“The sale and delivery of knives to anyone under the age of 18 is prohibited, unless it is a folding pocketknife with a folding blade of 3 inches/7.62 cm long or less.”
I see the story has made it to the Daily Mail and the BBC. Each version seems slightly different but it does confirm the story from the Guardian has staged photos so we don't know what he was wearing or how the tools were carried. It seems the trowel and sickle were returned, which seems strange if they were considered weapons. I'd still like to see all the facts laid out and to know what, if any, law was broken. I can easily see many others being caught out.
Links:
www.theguardian.com
www.bbc.co.uk
www.dailymail.co.uk
Links:
Man carrying home his gardening tools arrested by armed police in Manchester
Samuel Rowe, who was returning from allotment, seeking to overturn caution for possession of offensive weapon
www.theguardian.com
Gardener 'given no choice' over trowel arrest caution
Samuel Rowe accepted a caution without representation because police could not find a solicitor.
www.bbc.co.uk
Gardener is arrested after he is mistaken for 'knifeman wearing khaki'
Samuel Rowe, 35, had been walking with his trug of vegetables and gardening tools in Manchester earlier this month when he made the decision to trim his hedge.
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