The camera
phone is great for taking selfies and silliness or for turning any crime-conscious,
concerned, or curious citizen into a news capturing machine and giving rise to a
new term, “citizen journalist.”
On April 4,
2015 North Charleston Police Officer Michael Slager stopped Walter Scott for a supposed broken brake light. The officer made Scott exit his vehicle and pelt him with questions and threats of arrest. When
Scott bolted and ran, Slager shot him multiple times in the back with his
service revolver, reporting later that he shot Scott because Scott struggled to take his Taser and he "feared for his life." The incident
would have ended there if not for a youth who captured the murder on camera
phone.
I believe our police departments are making an effort to be more citizen-conscious. However, there
are some police who are going to make mistakes under pressure and a much, and a fewer
number who are outright rotten cops. But the camera phone is now pulling the veil
off bogus “The suspect was resisting arrest” and “The suspect made an aggressive
move toward me,” B.S.
It is legal, with some limitations, in all 50 states of the U.S. to video police
activity and a Supreme Court ruling and the First Article of the Constitution fortifies that. Yet, there are still incidents
of police baring citizen from videoing and even police threatening photographers with
arrest.
Restrictions are increasing in some states. A strict right to privacy bill was passed in 2014 in Illinois preventing video or photograph police activity without prior consent
of the person being arrested and the police officer. That bill was revised before it got to the Supreme Court.
There are currently bills in their infancy in some states, including my
own of Texas, restricting video of police activity. Supporters of the bill reason for the safety of the camera operator and impeding police duties.
Here is a video of a U.S. Marshal going ape-shit berserk and smashing a woman's phone while she records an incident a few houses away. Fortunately, a neighbor across the street videoed the attack. Unfortunately, the California branch of the U.S. Marshal Department successfully kept the name of the attacker secret and did not report if anything became of their internal investigation.
Click here for much information from the American Civil Liberties Union about photography, covering protests, and what to do if you believe your rights have been violated. While you are there, donate to the work the ACLU does for us. I did, and I received a cool membership card I now carry with me.
If you want to share your thoughts, contact Christopher at amosnews@yahoo.com
