2004 - HOMOPHOBIC POLICE VENDETTA 

Independent Police Complaints Commission

 

Following an attempted suicide in 1998 Lidbury had dropped out of further LGBT equality & HIV/AIDS campaigning. Later that year he met Rob M, who was to be his partner for the next six & a half years.

 

Homosexual Art Museum

 

2000: Lidbury started his own Amenity Horticultural business. By 2004 he was employing five people & providing training to staff to NVQ level 2, looking after approx. 25 acres of business premises in Cornwall. He was also running an internet art business selling primarily watercolor paintings of male nudes, but also creating bronzed male sculptures.  He also ran ‘front of house’ a bar for a restaurant for friends two evenings a week.

 

Lidbury’s business was approached by Helston College. Lidbury was asked to provide NVQ training employment to students through the business he owned. Lidbury’s business was expanding.  Lidbury checked with both Citizens Advice Bureau & the Prison Reform Trust to ensure his criminal record from 1987 did not preclude him from employing student staff as requested by the college.  Lidbury was assured by both organizations approached it did not.

 

Contrary to misleading malicious disinformation put out & submitted to court by police Lidbury was NEVER employed by the college as a gardener.  It was Lidbury who was approached & asked by the college to employ students in his ‘Lidbury’s’ business.  Lidbury’s horticultural business premises were at his family home set in three quarters of an acre. He was ‘OUT’ as a gay man, & had been living with his partner ‘Rob’ for over six years. Lidbury was up front & frank with staff at induction regarding him being openly gay.

 

Lidbury “In this business we do not discriminate on age, race, gender, religion or sexuality. Which is just as well as I’m the boss & I’m gay. If you have a problem with that, say so now”  Lidbury’s open gay sexuality & frank plain speaking seemed primarily to be a problem for homophobic Devon & Cornwall police.

 

2004: One of Lidbury’s student employees was kicked out of home at 16yrs of age. The young man’s father wrote a ‘letter of estrangement’ to social services stating he no longer wanted his son living in at home anymore and provided it to social services. Social services did nothing.

 

The student who was known to pensioner Rita Lidbury as one of her son’s staff when asked by the student offered him rented tenant accommodation in her home, a former 5 bedroom B&B.  This prevented the student from having to give up his NVQ course.   

 

The student’s accommodation in pensioner Mrs Rita Lidbury’s home arranged in complete knowledge of Cornwall Social Services social workers, Kerrier housing benefit dept. & to full knowledge of the students College of Mr Lidbury's gay sexuality, living as he did with his male partner also on the same premises.

 

NB: Police yet again misrepresented & lied about in Civil court proceedings in 2006

 

Feb 2004: the LGBT Intercom Trust asked Lidbury to assist with a forum on Cornwall LGBT community opinion of the Criminal Justice Service as part of research for the Lord Justice Kay award 2005.  Lidbury was concerned that Intercom seemed determined to turn a blind eye to homophobic incidents involving police officers.

 

Mch 2004: West Briton 'Gay community meets to talk about policing' 

Mch 2004: National LGBT Pink Paper 'Help make them fair cops'  

The original location for the lgbt forum meeting in the conference room at the premises Lidbury worked (Wheal Dream) was cancelled in part due to conduct and actions of Helston police officer DC Woods against Mr Lidbury as a gay man. A deeply homophobic police officer Devon & Cornwall police are well rid of.

 

Lidbury: "Had I known back then how Intercom Trust was going to simper & faun to the homophobic police & ignore homophobic incidents involving Devon & Cornwall police officers I probably would not have assisted in arranging the lgbt forum" 

 

INDEPENDENT POLICE COMPLAINTS COMMISSION

 

DC Woods, a police officer who Lidbury had reprimanded for homophobic comments at Lidbury’s restaurant place of work.

 

A formal complaint made to police & passed to IPCC.  DC R Woods aided by other police officers began what has become a relentless homophobic vendetta by Devon & Cornwall police lasting from 2004 - on going against Lidbury as a gay man.

 

Police witness statement (pt1) complaint against Devon & Cornwall police officers that has sparked over a decade of relentless homophobic police intimidation, threats, persecution of Lidbury as a gay man. 

 

Lidbury was sacked from his place of work as the prospective purchaser of the restaurant business who was spoken to by police about Lidbury being gay. The prospective purchaser an X-Navy Officer from RNAS Culdrose insisted the ‘gay man’ (Lidbury) working behind the restaurant bar be sacked before finalization of sale of the business. This was subsequently established as fact by Independent Police Complaints Commission in a ‘partial’ investigation.
 

Some valuable insight into Cornwall police thinking & homophobic attitudes against gay persons from 2004-07. DC Magnus Scott has much to answer for his instigation of multiple abuses against gay people in Cornwall carried out by homophobic Devon & Cornwall police.

 

NB: Some Devon & Cornwall police officers clearly appeared unaware that homosexuality had been decriminalized in the Sexual Offences Act 1967 & the equal age of homosexual equal age of consent with heterosexuals at 16yrs became lawful in Jan 2001.

Because….. 

# 2004: Lidbury allowed 16/17yr old gay/bi student employees to watch a gay themed film on a rainy day when they could not work due to weather.

 

NB: The ‘gay’ film was the 15 Certificate comedy, “The Birdcage”, starring Gene Hackman & Robin Williams. Certainly Not a gay porn film police were implying it was.

...Homophobic Cornwall police initially considered this film to be “SEXUAL GROOMING”.

# 2004: When a 16yr old, an ‘out’ gay youth choose a ‘Secret Santa’ gift of a pair of Tesco Christmas underpants & a small rubber novelty willy key ring for his 17yr old bisexual closet boyfriend

 

...Homophobic Cornwall Police initially considered this to be “SEXUAL GROOMING”.

# 2004: When a woman (Tressider) spread rumors that Lidbury had HIV/AIDS (he did not and had to prove it with a letter from the Treliske GU Clinic) & she screamed homophobic abuse at Lidbury in the streets in front of a witness. Cornwall police (Inspector Bolt, previously of Helston) stated in 'writing' the homophobic & HIV discriminatory verbal abuse screamed in the street & directed at Lidbury by T Tressider was NOT harassment. (Details established by IPCC).  Her son later confided that his mother had conspired with another over false allegation made to police against a Lidbury.

 

On more than one occasion various police officers of Devon & Cornwall police have suggested & implied, even in court 2006, Lidbury, (being gay) was an HIV risk to other people. This despite his HIV negative status (That means Lidbury does not have HIV) & his not inconsiderable contribution to HIV/AIDS awareness, treatment, support & care, etc. he is probably far better informed about HIV than most homophobic police officers

 

# 2005: When a gay employer enabled 16/17yr old student gay/bi employees to attend a GU Clinic in work time to receive professional sexual health advice & inoculations against Hepatitis due to potential risk in the workplace to possible exposure to human faeces.

…Homophobic Cornwall police initially considered this to be an offence of ‘SEXUAL GROOMING”

 

Apr 2004: Citizen Advice Bureau letter in reply to student employee enquiry as to student employment

 

– CAB writes:-

“Their response (Skills Council) has been that no enquiries are usually made regarding an employer’s past criminal record when setting up a Modern Apprenticeships. There should therefore be no problem in you accepting employment in a Modern Apprenticeship from your former work place provider”  CAB letter goes onto say “I fully understand your perception that your work placement provider has been subject of discrimination”  (Letter held on file by Sprocket Trust LGBT archive)

 

Police later dishonestly denied in civil Court 2006 this would be the advice given by CAB & had the letter excluded from evidence. (The CAB letter 20th April 2004 is held on file by Sprocket Trust LGBT archive)

 

May 2004:  Queer Writes publication- ‘Worst place in Britain to be gay…Cornwall’

July 2004: Queer Writes publication – ‘Cornwall Council runs on homophobic xenophobic nepotism’

 

Oct 2004: Lidbury’s 27yr old partner Rob M felt intimidated by the police relentless homophobic targeting of Lidbury & the gay couple parted company after a six & a half years relationship.

 

ARRESTED

Nov 2004: - Lidbury: a listed gay artist with a Middlesex University LSE Hall Carpenter Archive of gay artists, along with Hockney, Mapplethorpe, Gilbert, & George.

 

In Nov 97, Lidbury had jointly exhibited at Penzance Art Club his male bronze figures with Leigh Heppell a sculptor of erotic female forms.

 

Lidbury has Artwork in the Barcelona Spanish Museum of Erotic Art, Homosexual Art Foundation in New York, USA & internet Homosexual Art Museum, Italy.

 

Nov 2004: Lidbury had shown visitors to his home male nude paintings he was selling as an artist on a well-known internet auction site. A requirement of the auction site rules was that male nudes be depicted in no greater state of arousal that that of Michael Angelo’s sculpture of David.  Lidbury had complied entirely with these terms in the internet sales of all his paintings via the website.

 

Examples of Lidbury watercolour sketches 2004 on Wikimedia Commons:-

 

Cornwall police attempted to prosecute Lidbury for his perfectly legal homocentric Art. Cornwall police had raided his home in Nov 2004, arresting him & seizing his computer.

 

Police had also attempted to prosecute Lidbury for nude paintings commissioned by one of Lidbury’s mother’s student tenants.  Paintings of the tenant, commissioned by the tenant them self. The tenant did not ‘sit’ for the painting.  It was ‘worked up’ from a photograph in which the tenant was wearing shorts.

 

Police tried to make much of the young man’s age, but the young man was ‘Gillick competent’ & was over the legal age of both homosexual sexual consent (Which was totally irrelevant to Lidburys painting anyway) & was over the legal age of 16yrs in which a photograph may be considered indecent. (pre-May 2004 sexual offences Act). This however was NOT a photograph but a ‘painting’ created by Lidbury. Nudity in itself in an image is not indecent, otherwise much of the canon & tenure of western art over many centuries would be criminalized.

 

Police later admitted in:-

(1) Magistrate’s court

(2) Independent Police Complaints Commission report

(3) Civil Crown Court in Sept 2006 that there were NO illegal images on Lidbury’s computer or his paintings.

 

The person who made malicious allegation against Lidbury for his paintings also made a further allegation of a serious arrest able offence.  Numerous witnesses came forward in defense of Lidbury and gave statements against the false allegation. Police later admitted in Magistrates court that the allegation was false against Lidbury.

 

However the police chose not to prosecute the person who had made malicious false allegation.  Lidbury later informed it was not the 1st time the same person had made a false & malicious damaging serious criminal allegation to police against a person. It was alleged the false accuser had also collaborated with another in making of the false allegations, a homophobic hate crime against Lidbury.

 

 

2004: LIDBURY- AFRICAN HIV AIDS CHARITY PAINTINGS

 

Lidbury had painted some watercolour paintings to be sold in aid of Global Natural Health Care Trust, an African HIV/AIDS charity.  The police having seized the artist (Lidbury) computer prevented the HIV/AIDS charity sale of the paintings.

Gscene publication ; Art on Ebay

West Briton Newspaper: Artist auctions pieces to raise funds for AIDS work in Africa  

 

HIV/AIDS African charity painting

HIV/AIDS African charity painting

HIV/AIDS African charity painting

 

Lidbury’s art businesses entirely destroyed by police actions of withholding Lidbury’s computer unnecessarily (established by IPCC) after it had been examined by forensics & been given the all clear as having no illegal material.  Lidbury had identified no less than fourteen persons (tenants, tenants friends & friends of Lidbury) who at one time or another had use of the computer unsupervised.

 

Lidbury’s Amenity Horticultural business was irreparably damaged by relentless police intimidation.  Despite being acknowledged by the IPCC this has never been addressed by Devon & Cornwall police.

 

NO criminal charges resulted against Lidbury, however not before Lidbury had again attempted suicide by alcohol & Carbon Monoxide poisoning. This was due to abusive & relentless persecutory police misconduct over false allegations made against Lidbury by police. In the failed bid at suicide Lidbury had attached a vacuum cleaner pipe with gaffer tape to his car exhaust leading through the car widow.

 

Over a decade of protracted period of conflict has followed from 2004 by homophobic Devon & Cornwall police from when Lidbury initially reprimanded DC Woods for homophobic comments. Lidbury being repeatedly & relentlessly targeted as a gay man by police.

 

 

CORNWALL GAY COMMUNITY COMPLAINT TO

INDEPENDENT POLICE COMPLAINTS COMMISSION

 

Sept 2005: Other gay/bi men, friends of Lidbury were concerned at the way police complaints from gay people were ignored.  Over x200 signatures were collected in a petition, primarily gathered from within the Cornwall LGBT community at the ‘Eclipse gay nightclub’, Truro.  All 200+ signatures almost without exception expressing ‘NO FAITH’ in the Devon & Cornwall police complaints system.  The LGBT petition provided to Ian Bynoe Commissioner of the Independent Police Complaints Commission

 

…and was promptly ignored by IPCC. (Copy of the LGBT petition to IPCC held in the Sprocket Trust Cornwall LGBT history archive)

 

Next go to  Homeless Cornish Gay/Bi Youth

 

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