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I hope this subject is not considered off topic, but I would like to bring it to the attention of anyone here unaware of recent re-interpretations of the law that may effect us all.

Two years ago, Police raided and closed down Plymouth's premier dance culture venue, arresting a number of drug dealers, the club promoter, and the DJ. This month, with the passing of their sentences, we saw a change in the use of British law that now allows d.j.s to be imprisoned for the kind of music they play.

As promoters and D.J.s, the recent closure of 'The Dance Academy' in Plymouth, England, marks the beginning of a new wave of attacks upon dance culture. Resident DJ Costelloe has this month begun a five year prison sentence- why?

For playing music in a club where drugs were being bought, sold, and taken..

..and for playing music that the court ruled to encourage the use of such substances.

..there was no evidence that the DJ (or the club promoter, also now in jail) were in any way linked with those found dealing in the club. Strangely, the dealers mostly got off lightly.

My only source for this information is the current issue of MIX MAG, which I bought this morning. As a 'survivor' of the early party scene, this news concerns me greatly.

The club owner, Iranian born Manoucher Bahmanzadeh, has been sentenced to NINE years!!!

.. by anybody's standards made plenty of effort to prevent drug use in his club- shopping over 50 dealers to the Police himself over a 15 month period, had CCTV installed before it was mandatory for the license, and offered to pay Police to stand outside his club to deter dealers... so if this is considered 'inadequate', there is probably not a single UK dance venue that could not be closed in an instant under this legislation, and its recent interpretation. Any of us can be locked away for the music we play...

This hit a lot of people locally quite hard as the venue was a massive dnb venue in it's day, lets get a few things straight though:

1. The owner was blatantly involved in the dealing, there's no two ways around it and I doubt very much he would have got nine years if the feds had 'no evidence'

2. If Costello is the other breh Tom who owns and runs the club (a registered liscencee) then there's no way he couldn't have known either. And he took the risk on when he registered himself as a liscencee. (If this dj is not the other liscencee then fuck knows)

3. Rumour has it the owner was shopping other dealers in his club so people could only go to his. Happens in a few clubs I've been to.

4. It's got nothing to do with the type of music they play, that's either you (or believeably) Mixmag being completely sensationalist.


I'm not saying they didn't get a raw deal or that they deserved or stupid things like that. But they got caught, busted and sent down. That's what happens if you take illegal risks and get caught.

there must have been more to it, it would be against your human rights to be arrested yet alone imprisoned just because you play certain types of records.

powerpill wrote:there must have been more to it, it would be against your human rights to be arrested yet alone imprisoned just because you play certain types of records.

lock 'em up

wascal - valid point

Yes, if you are involved with drug culture in any way, you risk getting caught. That is not my point, nor MixMags.

Personally, PowerPill, I think you got that right.

Whatever the facts regarding the owner and DJ's actual involvement.. The ruling was that they were imprisoned for allowing the drug use to take place, and for playing music associated with drug culture- not for their involvement in selling them.

This reinterpretation of UK law does indeed have implications for us all.

This is the second club in the UK to be closed under this new interpretation of the ASB2003 act.. The other was The Fridge, in Brixton.

It may well be that the owner and DJ were actively involved in drug selling, but the only way to arrest them was to reinterprate the law. Yet this new interpretation DOES mean that DJs can be arrested for playing music that encourages drug use, in any venue where anyone is busted whatever their actual connection with the criminal. Effectively, the DJ has just become a criminal as well.

JOY THROUGH DISOBEDIENCE wrote:Yes, if you are involved with drug culture in any way, you risk getting caught. That is not my point, nor MixMags.

Personally, PowerPill, I think you got that right.

Whatever the facts regarding the owner and DJ's actual involvement.. The ruling was that they were imprisoned for allowing the drug use to take place, and for playing music associated with drug culture- not for their involvement in selling them.

This reinterpretation of UK law does indeed have implications for us all.

This is the second club in the UK to be closed under this new interpretation of the ASB2003 act.. The other was The Fridge, in Brixton.

It may well be that the owner and DJ were actively involved in drug selling, but the only way to arrest them was to reinterprate the law. Yet this new interpretation DOES mean that DJs can be arrested for playing music that encourages drug use, in any venue where anyone is busted whatever their actual connection with the criminal. Effectively, the DJ has just become a criminal as well.

But this guy wasn't just a DJ, he was the General Manager. Big difference.

Scaremongering imo

Crazy crazy

I'm sure it would never stop you guys from playing, anyway.

Yep, happened months ago: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/devon/7517326.stm

JOY THROUGH DISOBEDIENCE wrote:Yes, if you are involved with drug culture in any way, you risk getting caught. That is not my point, nor MixMags.

I know that's not your point, but the fact is there's more than mxmag cares to print because it's affecting club culture detrimentally. So it's sensationalist and leaving out key facts (which is my point).

Whatever the facts regarding the owner and DJ's actual involvement.. The ruling was that they were imprisoned for allowing the drug use to take place, and for playing music associated with drug culture- not for their involvement in selling them.

No they weren't, they were charged with directly allowing the sale of class A drugs in thier establishment. It's a shitty deal, I agree. Not anything to do with the music being played at all. Ever. Not even slightly.

This reinterpretation of UK law does indeed have implications for us all.

This is the second club in the UK to be closed under this new interpretation of the ASB2003 act.. The other was The Fridge, in Brixton.

It does have wide ranging implications, but what is most likely to happen, is some of our favourite dingy blacked out basements, will start taing strict zero tolerance approaches.

It may well be that the owner and DJ were actively involved in drug selling, but the only way to arrest them was to reinterprate the law. Yet this new interpretation DOES mean that DJs can be arrested for playing music that encourages drug use, in any venue where anyone is busted whatever their actual connection with the criminal. Effectively, the DJ has just become a criminal as well.

No it really really really doesn't. Please don't believe whatever you have read that tells you this. This is not how the bill is being interpreted at all. If it was even vaguely like that, there would be massive impingement on freedom of speech and human rights not too mention huge riots as a result!

The bill is being enforced as a scare tactic to force club owners to clamp down on drug use (mainly class a) in thier clubs with threat of huge fines and prison sentences.

Indeed, they were imprisoned at the end of July. Being the hard core dedicated dude you are, Wascal, I'm sure you are on top of the score.

Others also are concerned with the implications of the case, however, and I remain concerned despite the fact that the venue in question evidently appealed to 'orrible chavs, and anyone in Plymouth not looking for a fight on the weekend is probably more than glad to see its closure.

I'd never been to the D. Academy anyway, although my wife says it was a good venue back in the day...

http://www.thisisplymouth.co.uk/news/Ca ... ticle.html

A third man, Nezan Ahmed, who was head doorman at the club, failed to appear in court. He is thought to have fled to Iraq.

From the BBC.

LOL.

There was a lot more to it.

Hang tight every bouncer on the 'recirculation' flex. Your time.

JOY THROUGH DISOBEDIENCE wrote:
.. by anybody's standards made plenty of effort to prevent drug use in his club- shopping over 50 dealers to the Police himself over a 15 month period, had CCTV installed before it was mandatory for the license, and offered to pay Police to stand outside his club to deter dealers...

hell i hope he meets now the guys he sent to jail before!

the rest is a nice story for the press, not for old bones like mine!

Elementalism wrote:

A third man, Nezan Ahmed, who was head doorman at the club, failed to appear in court. He is thought to have fled to Iraq.

From the BBC.

LOL.

There was a lot more to it.

Hang tight every bouncer on the 'recirculation' flex. Your time.

Ahahaha

this is like reverse daily mail stylee.