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It became apparent to some lesbian & gay persons that aspects of Cornwall's LGBT social, gay health, equality & campaigning history were being re-written. Certain inconvenient truths about Cornish LGBT life of the late C20th & early C21st were being airbrushed out & erased entirely by those now in control & running the 'official'? recording of Cornwall's LGBT history. 'One Queer Gay Life' is a referenced record drawn from the Sprocket Trust small archive (press cuttings, documents, letters, photos, publications, etc.) of aspects of LGBT life in Cornwall others might prefer you simply did not know.

Sunday 26 April 2015

2006 Stop, Strip and Search Cornish Gay Youth

2006 - Cornish Gay Youth
STOP, STRIP & SEARCH
 
Feb 2006:  Rita Lidbury 74yr old mother of Malcolm Lidbury was verbally abused by Cornwall police (PC Alexander 4668 of Helston & police colleague) when Mrs Rita Lidbury went to give witness assistance to a gay youth being persecuted by police. The youth already a witness against police for other formal complaints to the IPCC of police homophobic conduct.

The youth was detained by police in a Helston Methodist chapel at a coffee morning. He was subjected to a partial strip search, sworn at, and then forcibly taken by police to a retail outlet.
 
The shop staff positively identified the youth WAS NOT the person who had stolen an item. Police then failed to give a stop and search form & failed to apologize to the youth or his pensioner landlady, Mrs Rita Lidbury. The reason police gave for targeting the gay youth was he had ‘Blue Hair’. This later denied by police, yet ‘blue hair’ stated by police as reason three times on ‘stop & search’ form eventually obtained from police having visited two police station & photo copy eventually obtained from police by post.
 
Stop & Search form:

It remains opinion of those involved in aiding the youth that police deliberately targeted the gay youth as he was a witness in formal IPCC complaint procedures against a number of other Cornwall police officers.

NB: The person who was actually responsible for the theft (Mr O***s) later detained & prosecuted.  Mr Lidbury tracked down Mr O***s, who in Aug 2007 apologized for the trouble ‘he’, Mr O***s caused to the gay youth being falsely accused & subsequently abused by police.
 
There has never been an apology from Cornwall police arrogance for the abusive intimidation & treatment by PC Alexander 4668 & the other police officer, neither to the innocent gay youth or his pensioner landlady.