Criminal barbering? Raids at Orange County shops lead to arrests, raise questions

[Hugabear]

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/crime/os-illegal-barbering-arrests-20101107,0,2783682.story

<snip>
As many as 14 armed Orange County deputies, including narcotics agents, stormed Strictly Skillz barbershop during business hours on a Saturday in August, handcuffing barbers in front of customers during a busy back-to-school weekend.

It was just one of a series of unprecedented raid-style inspections the Orange County Sheriff's Office recently conducted with a state regulating agency, targeting several predominantly black- and Hispanic-owned barbershops in the Pine Hills area.

In "sweeps" on Aug. 21 and Sept. 17 targeting at least nine shops, deputies arrested 37 people — the majority charged with "barbering without a license," a misdemeanor that state records show only three other people have been jailed in Florida in the past 10 years.

The operations were conducted without warrants, under the authority of the Department of Business and Professional Regulation inspectors, who can enter salons at will. Deputies said they found evidence of illegal activity, including guns, drugs and gambling. However, records show that during the two sweeps, and a smaller one in October, just three people were charged with anything other than a licensing violation.
<snip>

Good thing there isn't any violent crime here in Orlando. Thank God we have the SWAT teams here in Orlando to protect us from people cutting hair without licenses.

[earcandle]

1. Not funny for the people who got arrested. Yeah. Rule of law... need to be inspected.

[TheDebbieDee]

2. Because we all recognized that unlicensed barbers

are a menace to society. I mean, we should build even more prisons in which to detain these bastards! To keep prevent these people from keeping the American male kempt!

[Tunkamerica]

5. yeah, we need less regulation of barbers! and nail salons! and tattoo artists!

and dentists!

Tell me what you think next time you get hepatitis from unsanitized clippers, or needles, or whatever. The rules are there for a reason. The licensing is there to protect the public.

You guys are funny. You probably think the EPA is unnecessary too.

[provis99]

8. ...

[Hannah Bell]

14. why were the swat teams necessary?

[Hugabear]

12. I think they were fishing, hoping to find drugs and weapons

They didn't have warrants, so they used this as a pretext. If they happened to come across any drugs, guns, or other illegal things, then so much the better.

[Crazy Dave]

3. Reminds me of when the cops or other officials....

Shut down kid's lemonade stands or bake sales. A couple of weeks ago I saw two kids get their pumpkin stand shut down for not having a license to sell them. True story.

If you sell a bad mortgage you won't go to jail and you'll get a huge bonus. Sell a lot of bad mortgages and you can even get your own company jet.

[SammyWinstonJack]

11. +1

[Poll_Blind]

4. This is actually a silly symptom of a potentially very dangerous problem:

As these counties run dry, they're going to try to grab money through fines absolutely any way they can. I remember the first time I heard someone say, probably on DU, that one of the goals of a fascist government is to basically turn everyone into criminals. They don't have to necessarily come after you, but they always keep the fear in the back of your mind that if they want to bust you for something, the absolutely can.

Now, is it certain this is a symptom of the counties looking for money any way they can get it? I'm not sure. But it seems like that.

With 3 arrests in the last 10 years, makes you wonder about why they'd be so hot to bust people for it now.

PB

[Tunkamerica]

6. that's not the only possible explanation.

perhaps the licensing fees are harder to pay so less are paid so more people are breaking the law. Obviously the public (judging by the replies to this article) is uneducated as to the benefits of having a licensed barber who submits to inspections so maybe more barbers are flouting the laws. There are many possible reasons and it doesn't have to be big government.

[JonLP24]

7. I think based on the article

This seems like it was much more than a simple license inspection. I'm not sure because I wasn't there. Just my .02.

[Tunkamerica]

13. yeah yeah, i get that.

maybe i came on too strong, but I have friends who are licensed and lose some business to unlicensed, cheaper but more dangerous counterparts.

[The Backlash Cometh]

10. What scares me the most is that this economy has hit minority areas

the hardest, and then the police comes and tries to disrupt the one stable force in their neighborhoods.

I mean, this sounds like the kind of thing you heard about in Communist Russia.

[The Backlash Cometh]

9. This will amount to nothing unless a Civil Rights group from outside

Florida gets involved.

[Phil The Cat]

15. A LICENSE to CUT HAIR?

What next - you will need a license to fix someone's pipes or wiring?

You will need a LICENSE to open a restaurant? To sell someone a house?

All kidding aside - first, no one should be in business "for themselves". we need a community-oriented economy, not a personal gain economy! Barbers and hair stylists should be government employees whose job it is to provide grooming services at the lowest possible cost to the consumer, not capitalists robbing the people!

But since we are not there, consideration should be given if these were people who did not know that licenses are required! Work with them, encourrage them to get legal, but quit arresting them! African Americans and Latinos have enough problems in this racist society without armed nannies crushing them further!