In message , Soup writes
Nothing to do with DIY, but a kid threw a stone, chipping our window,
> I chased him but couldn't catch him just as well as it turned out
> (a "police" friend told me later)as he was underage and I would have
> been arrested for kidnapping (stopping him running,escorting! him to
> his or my house until the police arrived),assaulting a minor (any cuff
>on the lug or similar),etc. . He probably would have got counseling
>while I was doing jail time . This may have been tinged with a bit of
> common in ye olde dayes but in the present climate ..
> Talking to the parents later it was a case of "so, no one died" IANAL
That is the opposite of my recent experience. I had just left for work when my car was hit by several water bombs. I managed to grab hold of one of the kids (whom I did not know/recognise) and rang 999 (I could've swerved/caused a crash (I was on a fairly busy road)). The police took a while to arrive but did take the matter seriously & spoke to the parents (the youngster I had hold of burst into tears, confessed all and identified the rest of them). The police were prepared to take it further but I agreed to drop it since the kids (and the parents it appeared) had taken my concerns on board.