A police force has defended taking action after questioning a man who liked a limerick on social media.
Harry Miller, 53, says he spoke to officers for half an hour over the derogatory poem which included the line: ‘Your breasts are made of silicone, your vagina goes nowhere.’
He claims the officer on the phone told him he was investigating a report of ‘hate speech’ after an unnamed complainant contacted the force.
Mr Miller said on Twitter: ‘Cop said he was in possession of 30 tweets by me. I asked if any contained criminal material. He said no.
‘I asked if any came close to being criminal and he read me a limerick. Honestly. A limerick. A cop read me a limerick over the phone.’
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Humberside Police came in for criticism with many saying it was a waste of police time and mocking ‘gestapo tactics’.
Yesterday they defended their position saying it was correct to record the hate incident.
Assistant chief constable Scott Young said: ‘Hate incidents can cause extreme distress to victims and communities, some of whom are incredibly vulnerable members of our society.
‘A hate incident is recorded as such if the victim perceives the actions taken to be wholly, or partially, motivated by hostility or prejudice.
‘This relates to any actions, whether spoken or written, around race, religion, sexual orientation, disability and transgender.
‘We, and all forces, follow College of Policing guidance in relation to handling reports of hate incidents, which can often be a precursor and can escalate to more serious crimes and we, as the police, have a responsibility to prevent crime.
‘In this case, there were more than 30 tweets reported to us of a transphobic nature, not just a liked or retweeted limerick as some reports have suggested.
‘This isn’t a case of the “police controlling people’s thoughts”. The actions taken by the individual and his comments made around transgender caused someone distress. We take all reports of hate related incidents seriously and aim to ensure they do not escalate into anything further.
‘The correct decision was made to record the report as a hate incident (as opposed to a hate crime in which a full investigation would have followed), and to proportionately progress by making contact with the individual concerned to discuss the actions taken on social media.
‘There is evidence to show hate related incidents are already under reported with people feeling they won’t be taken seriously and not having confidence in the police.
‘I want to offer my reassurance that we will always take reports of this nature seriously, and as with this case, take proportionate action.’
