4 ms·
You may be harrassed if you film cops, but it is plainly legal[1], and the courts have recently begun to be more aggressive about slapping down municipalities t
by llamataboot 13y ago
You may be harrassed if you film cops, but it is plainly legal[1], and the courts have recently begun to be more aggressive about slapping down municipalities that try to restrict it.[2] Normalizing it will go a long way to keeping police from thinking they can harass activist-types that are filming cops. I have been filming cops with copwatch groups from the days we had to carry big shoulder mounted video cameras.
1) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glik_v._Cunniffe https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glik_v._Cunniffe
2) http://reason.com/archives/2012/04/05/7-rules-for-recording-police http://reason.com/archives/2012/04/05/7-rules-for-recording-...
- sophacles 13y agoLegality doesn't stop regular occurrences of filmers being arrested for "obstruction of justice".
- sliverstorm 13y agoThen get arrested. What ever happened to civil disobedience?
- llamataboot 13y agoLike I said, I have filmed a lot of police interactions. I have been harassed many times, but never arrested. I /have/ been arrested for obstruction of legal process once. Ironically, it was a time when I wasn't filming and just standing off to the side taking notes. If you do get arrested, you can both win damages for yourself and often change the entire written rules of a police department by suing. But again, normalizing this will go a long way to people not getting harassed and cops knowing that they could be being filmes in any public interaction at any time.
- sophacles 13y agoI am arguing only that you suggest harassment is the worst that will happen. There is much much much documentation that the worst is far worse than harassment. I am not disputing the potential (not at all as certain as you seem to think) of getting damages even. Merely that arrest and court is far beyond harassment. I agree with the normalizing of the circumstances aspect of your argument. Basically I am saying the fact that you haven't been arrested does not in any way (logically, evidentially or even anecdotally) suggest that this the case one should prepare for.
- jcromartie 13y agoThe fact that people get arrested for exercising their rights is a fantastic reason to exercise those same rights as often as possible. Would you have told civil rights protestors to stop sit-ins or marches?
- sophacles 13y agoArrested with potential consequences is not the same as the mere "harassment" claimed by the parent. This is the only point I was making. I think you misunderstood my intent.