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posted by CoolHand on Thursday May 07 2015, @11:25AM   Printer-friendly
from the get-back-to-eating-your-donuts dept.

Robinson Meyer writes in The Atlantic that first of all, police shouldn't ask. "As a basic principle, we can't tell you to stop recording," says Delroy Burton, a 21-year veteran of DC's police force. "If you're standing across the street videotaping, and I'm in a public place, carrying out my public functions, [then] I'm subject to recording, and there's nothing legally the police officer can do to stop you from recording." What you don't have a right to do is interfere with an officer's work. ""Police officers may legitimately order citizens to cease activities that are truly interfering with legitimate law enforcement operations," according to Jay Stanley who wrote the ACLU's "Know Your Rights" guide for photographers, which lays out in plain language the legal protections that are assured people filming in public. Police officers may not confiscate or demand to view your digital photographs or video without a warrant and police may not delete your photographs or video under any circumstances.

What if an officer says you are interfering with legitimate law enforcement operations and you disagree with the officer? "If it were me, and an officer came up and said, 'You need to turn that camera off, sir,' I would strive to calmly and politely yet firmly remind the officer of my rights while continuing to record the interaction, and not turn the camera off," says Stanley. The ACLU guide also supplies the one question those stopped for taking photos or video may ask an officer: "The right question to ask is, 'am I free to go?' If the officer says no, then you are being detained, something that under the law an officer cannot do without reasonable suspicion that you have or are about to commit a crime or are in the process of doing so. Until you ask to leave, your being stopped is considered voluntary under the law and is legal."

 
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  • (Score: 2) by iwoloschin on Thursday May 07 2015, @03:15PM

    by iwoloschin (3863) on Thursday May 07 2015, @03:15PM (#179944)

    In that case, call 911 and confirm with the dispatcher that the call is being recorded. Ask to remain on the line until you have arrived in a "safe" place, which in this case is probably an area that has enough people to provide witness to any further events. Do everything in your power to ensure that your actions are recorded, either by phone, by camera, or by eye witness (bonus points if they have a camera!). Also, be reasonable, don't just reach into your pocket in front of an officer, tell them what you're about to do, and do everything slowly and calmly. I suppose even more this is an excellent use case for Siri/Google Now, particularly if it's always listening, no need to even physically hold your phone!

    "Ok Google, call 911!" and the phone calls 911 on speakerphone?
    "Ok Google, record everything!" turns on the camera and starts recording? Even better, lock the phone and start uploading the recording to a "safe" place online.

    Remember, the dispatcher is generally your friend. Over the phone they have no way to tell if you're white or black, guy or gal, gay or straight, or any other minority class. Sure, speech patterns and voice pitch may give clues, but not confirmation. And if you tell a dispatcher that you are "afraid for your life" then they will not bullshit around, they're going to ask for your location and dispatch more officers. Granted, more officers might not be good for you specifically, but the more people involved the harder it would be to hide something and keep everyone's stories straight.

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  • (Score: 2) by frojack on Friday May 08 2015, @12:01AM

    by frojack (1554) on Friday May 08 2015, @12:01AM (#180109) Journal

    If you don't have an actual emergency, 911 is not required to keep you on the line.
    Maybe you could request an ambulance for the beating you are about to get?

    They will just hang up on you. Especially if this were to become a frequently used ploy.

    --
    No, you are mistaken. I've always had this sig.