- 4,510
- 26
- Joined
- Jul 17, 2002
Hooded sweatshirts have been around for more than a few years, but even with their transcendence from practical sweatwear to trendy fashion focal points, few could have predicted they would pose such an immediate threat to public safety.
And yet that's what Toronto Police claim to be the case, after a new style of the popular items gives would-be criminals built-in protection from cops and witnesses alike.
The garments in question are called full-zip hoodies, zip up sweats on which the hoods have been replaced by fully zippable masks, which can just as easily dangle at one's back as conceal a person's identity in the time it takes to zip up.
"There's been two cases now here in Toronto ... where they're wearing the zipped up hoodies with the masks covering their faces," confirmed Det. Larry Straver, Crime Stoppers. "Obviously this is a concern, not only to the police but to the general public."
Still, some kids say a few bad apples should spoil innovative fashion.
"They don't rob people just because they've got hoods, they could get ski masks and stuff too," countered one Toronto student named Finnian.
But critics aren't so easily swayed, calling the ready-made disguises irresponsible, while the makers say they're just giving customers what they're clamouring for. Retailers add that they're having little trouble moving their stock.
"I run through, probably ... 100 pieces in a couple of days," estimated Lionel Grant, a Toronto clothing store owner whose boutique specializes in so-called "urban" or "street" wear. All that, he adds, and the average one goes for around $200.
At least one U.S. police department is asking for them to be banned after seizing several during a raid, and Toronto Police have made similar discoveries when breaking up alleged crime rings.
Six California schools have also banned the items, though there are fears such actions will only make them more attractive to defiant young people.
And there's more: there are reports manufacturers are currently working on bulletproof hoodies, though it's not known whether they'll be available in the full-zip style.