Violent attack on teenager makes him stand for local council

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Violent attack on teenager makes him stand for local council

By Mark Pack | Sun 13th February 2011 - 2:55 pm

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This is Gloucestershire reports:

WHEN teenager Joe Harris was viciously mugged by a hooded gang he elected to take on the establishment.

The 17-year-old was battered to the ground and threatened with death in a Cirencester alley.

So he personally challenged Cotswold District Council to accept there was a problem with “random violent attacks” in the town.

As a follow up he’s decide to run for both the district council and the local town council, saying:

I was able to pose a question to the full council but I felt they didn’t really answer it.

It was almost as if they slapped me away with the back of the hand and said ‘you’re not important’ and they had their own agenda.

You can read the full story here.

Read more by Mark Pack or more about cotswold district council or joe harris.
This entry was posted in Local government and News.

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4 Comments

Duncan 13th Feb '11 - 8:29pm

Looking at the link it seems that he believes very strongly in the virtues of CCTV

‘We also need to reinstate the town’s CCTV manned monitoring hours as that’s invaluable.”

Interesting stance for a Lib Dem.
KL 14th Feb '11 - 8:42am

@Duncan – CCTV has its place, it’s what you do with the film and how you manage the areas not covered that’s more important. I was initially sceptical, but having seen it in action in my own ward it does work. There is a risk that disorder is merely displaced to outlying areas, but careful policing can minimise this.
Mike Evemy 14th Feb '11 - 9:38am

Joe will be a great councillor if he’s elected in May. His energy and determination will certainly shake the Cotswold Tories up!
Ian Sanderson (RM3) 14th Feb '11 - 12:51pm

Yes, it’s nice to see that he is acting as the citizen rather than a subject or a victim.

CCTV is like utilities such as electricity. It has to be used wisely. If it is not monitored or recorded it is a waste of money. It must be monitored by trustworthy people. Pictures recorded are personal data and must be safeguarded as such. They must not be used for frivolous purposes or misused.
While the pictures may be helpful for law enforcement, they may be equally useful to government or private companies which might want to override people’s civil rights and to various sorts of criminals