It's Perfectly Legal To Film The Cops

[Tank]

It's not always legal, check out this asshole:

LiveLeak.com - Utah Cops Arrest Teen for Recording, Judge then Orders Teen to Admit Guilt before Trial

I did. Did you?

Ya, that why that asshole was convicted of filming the police

 

[Mr. H.]

I don't go out of my way to piss off ANYONE... why would I do so to a policeman?

Why would I photo of video anyone just because I have an attitude and a camera and an agenda?

Because there are a lot of rogue cops that don't want to be caught breaking the law.

And what does "photo of video" someone mean?
Nine Things That Happen When You Film Police Encounters | Cop Block

A policeman is a policeman and we should view them all as such. And we should respect them as such.

Your paranoia of "rogue cops" is palpable.

Here are nine thing that happen when you act like an ass...



Bitch.

 

[Lakhota]

It's not always legal, check out this asshole:

LiveLeak.com - Utah Cops Arrest Teen for Recording, Judge then Orders Teen to Admit Guilt before Trial

I did. Did you?

Ya, that why that asshole was convicted of filming the police

Your link is a crock of shit that doesn't compare apples to apples. How old is your link?

 

[Tank]

I did. Did you?

Ya, that why that asshole was convicted of filming the police

Your link is a crock of shit that doesn't compare apples to apples. How old is your link?

It happened 8-2-14

Ya stupid injun

 

[hipeter924]

Sure it is, but the unofficial rule is 'film anyone without them saying you can do so and they will be an ass to you, even if they violate your civil liberties by forbidding you to do so'.

We're talking about cops here - not civilians. Are you suggesting that people should be AFRAID to film cops? If so, that raises several other issues regarding their mentality and training.

The role of a cop is to protect and serve. They are not vigilantes in uniform.

I am talking about both here. Police like other members of publicly funded organizations, worry for their jobs - especially now. They don't want to be filmed because they could be filmed doing something wrong i.e. police brutality or misconduct.

With general members of the public, there are people out there that react negatively to being filmed, once I filmed in an area with some people around just to test the camera, and got a negative reaction. Like I was doing some undercover expose for some TV show.

Back to the Police, I don't really trust them, some are awful around DC and Maryland area. They have no right to treat people badly and take away civil liberties that they have no right to take away - but this has been going on since Segregation and Jim Crow laws were given a tick. They can receive human rights training, but if the police culture is filled with corruption and abuse it is very hard to break the cycle.

 

[Jarlaxle]

Cops react to cameras like cockroaches to floodlights...it's that simple.

 

[Delta4Embassy]

Snapping photos of police in Ferguson, Missouri, may have gotten Huffington Post reporter Ryan J. Reilly arrested Wednesday night while he was covering protests prompted by the death of Michael Brown, an unarmed black teenager who was shot to death by a police officer.

Reilly and Washington Post reporter Wesley Lowrey were detained and assaulted after attempting to film a swarm of police officers inside a McDonald’s. An officer slammed Reilly's head into a glass window, and Lowery was shoved into a soda fountain while wearing press credentials around his neck. Both were later released without being charged with breaking any laws.

“They essentially acted as a military force,” said Reilly, who was in the restaurant to charge his phone and computer. “It was incredible.”

In recent years, there have been countless cases of police officers ordering people to turn off their cameras, confiscating phones, and, like Reilly, arresting those who attempt to capture footage of them. Despite a common misconception, it’s actually perfectly legal to film police officers on the job.

“There are First Amendment protections for people photographing and recording in public,” Mickey Osterreicher, an attorney with the National Press Photographers Association, told The Huffington Post. According to Osterreicher, as long as you don’t get in their way, it’s perfectly legal to take photos and videos of police officers everywhere in the United States.

This misconception is pervasive enough that the New York City Police Department circulated a memo last week reminding officers.

“Members of the public are legally allowed to record police interactions,” the memo states, according to the Daily News. “Intentional interference such as blocking or obstructing cameras or ordering the person to cease constitutes censorship and also violates the First Amendment.”

The NYPD’s reminder comes as police activity is in the national spotlight. Just two days after Michael Brown’s death, cops in Los Angeles shot to death an unarmed black man who allegedly struggled with mental illness. And three weeks ago, a New York City police officer put Eric Garner in an illegal chokehold that left him dead after gasping “I can’t breathe!” A bystander caught the entire thing on video.

Those deaths, along with the arrests of Reilly and Lowrey, have raised questions about what, if anything, individuals can do to hold the police accountable for their actions. But one unquestionable right people have is to capture officers on film.

“There’s no law anywhere in the United States that prohibits people from recording the police on the street, in a park, or any other place where the public is generally allowed,” Osterreicher said.

So why do so many police officers still act like filming them is a crime?

“Probably because they haven’t been trained otherwise,” said Osterreicher. “I think that there are many officers that believe that the minute they tell somebody to do or not do something, that that’s an order. But police can only order somebody to do or not do something based on the law, and there is no law that says you can not record or photograph out in public.”

More: It's Perfectly Legal To Film The Cops

So, if a cop tells you to stop filming or recording - you have the legal right to ignore him. This is good to know, because I've heard conflicting accounts on the legality of filming cops in action during the last few years. So now I know it's legal in all 50 states.

It's legal everywhere it's legal. Isn't legal everywhere though. And where it's legal it isn't always unrestrictedly so. May have to get the subject's permission for example.

Never have a right to ignore an officer's orders. You can contest what you believe was an unlawful order at your trial, but if you wish to live long enough to see a courtroom, my advice, obey every order.

Wanna assert the rights you think you have because of what some dink on tv said, be my guest.

 

[Seawytch]

It is ALWAYS legal to film police in public. Taping private conversations when the individual doesn't know he is being taped is another matter.

 

[Delta4Embassy]

It is ALWAYS legal to film police in public. Taping private conversations when the individual doesn't know he is being taped is another matter.

No it's not. As many camera-phones now include audio, as you pointed out if it's recording audio as well it's not legal. Breaks Federal wiretapping laws. Straight video/pictures is legal but with provisions like you can't physically impede an officer in the process. You stand in their path doing it and it's not legal. Plus this is all Federal law. State laws might vary. As with other Federal-State legal issues, just because the Federal Law says one thing doesn't mean it's legal in every state.

Should be careful making absolute statements like "it's always legal to..."

Plus there's a difference between what's legal, and what's a good idea. Officer tells you to do something, unless you wanna spend you life savings in court asserting your rights, might wanna just obey the officer.

 

[Seawytch]

It is ALWAYS legal to film police in public. Taping private conversations when the individual doesn't know he is being taped is another matter.

No it's not. As many camera-phones now include audio, as you pointed out if it's recording audio as well it's not legal. Breaks Federal wiretapping laws. Straight video/pictures is legal but with provisions like you can't physically impede an officer in the process. You stand in their path doing it and it's not legal. Plus this is all Federal law. State laws might vary. As with other Federal-State legal issues, just because the Federal Law says one thing doesn't mean it's legal in every state.

Should be careful making absolute statements like "it's always legal to..."

Plus there's a difference between what's legal, and what's a good idea. Officer tells you to do something, unless you wanna spend you life savings in court asserting your rights, might wanna just obey the officer.

Wrong. Filming in public WITH audio is perfectly legal. Holding up your phone or camera is sufficient "warning" that filming is occurring.

 

[Seawytch]

It is ALWAYS legal to film the cops in public...ALWAYS.

 

[AvgGuyIA]

It interferes with police doing undercover work. I suppose you think it's okay to videotape Seal Team 6 members while they're on an operation too and post it on YouTube.

 

[Iceweasel]

You may have the right but not right where you want. If you are too close, and camera phones aren't known for sporting telephoto lenses, you have to move. That's why so many get into trouble, they are too stupid to understand they can't do anything they want any time they want.

 

[Freewill]

Snapping photos of police in Ferguson, Missouri, may have gotten Huffington Post reporter Ryan J. Reilly arrested Wednesday night while he was covering protests prompted by the death of Michael Brown, an unarmed black teenager who was shot to death by a police officer.

Reilly and Washington Post reporter Wesley Lowrey were detained and assaulted after attempting to film a swarm of police officers inside a McDonald’s. An officer slammed Reilly's head into a glass window, and Lowery was shoved into a soda fountain while wearing press credentials around his neck. Both were later released without being charged with breaking any laws.

“They essentially acted as a military force,” said Reilly, who was in the restaurant to charge his phone and computer. “It was incredible.”

In recent years, there have been countless cases of police officers ordering people to turn off their cameras, confiscating phones, and, like Reilly, arresting those who attempt to capture footage of them. Despite a common misconception, it’s actually perfectly legal to film police officers on the job.

“There are First Amendment protections for people photographing and recording in public,” Mickey Osterreicher, an attorney with the National Press Photographers Association, told The Huffington Post. According to Osterreicher, as long as you don’t get in their way, it’s perfectly legal to take photos and videos of police officers everywhere in the United States.

This misconception is pervasive enough that the New York City Police Department circulated a memo last week reminding officers.

“Members of the public are legally allowed to record police interactions,” the memo states, according to the Daily News. “Intentional interference such as blocking or obstructing cameras or ordering the person to cease constitutes censorship and also violates the First Amendment.”

The NYPD’s reminder comes as police activity is in the national spotlight. Just two days after Michael Brown’s death, cops in Los Angeles shot to death an unarmed black man who allegedly struggled with mental illness. And three weeks ago, a New York City police officer put Eric Garner in an illegal chokehold that left him dead after gasping “I can’t breathe!” A bystander caught the entire thing on video.

Those deaths, along with the arrests of Reilly and Lowrey, have raised questions about what, if anything, individuals can do to hold the police accountable for their actions. But one unquestionable right people have is to capture officers on film.

“There’s no law anywhere in the United States that prohibits people from recording the police on the street, in a park, or any other place where the public is generally allowed,” Osterreicher said.

So why do so many police officers still act like filming them is a crime?

“Probably because they haven’t been trained otherwise,” said Osterreicher. “I think that there are many officers that believe that the minute they tell somebody to do or not do something, that that’s an order. But police can only order somebody to do or not do something based on the law, and there is no law that says you can not record or photograph out in public.”

More: It's Perfectly Legal To Film The Cops

So, if a cop tells you to stop filming or recording - you have the legal right to ignore him. This is good to know, because I've heard conflicting accounts on the legality of filming cops in action during the last few years. So now I know it's legal in all 50 states.

Fake, fake, fake, fake BS liberal protest. First of all the picture of the police that you present shows them in protective gear not military gear. I suppose you either don't think they need protection or we just allow anarchy to reign.

Second, the left justified this militarization of the police to the point of calling all those who protest the killing of the children, wackos.

 

[AvgGuyIA]

Woman arrested for filming police - YouTube

And there are plenty more like it on YouTube

Stupid bitch. The police need to know they are safe and repeatedly warned her. I wonder if the HOs in the poikey taught her any new tricks. lol

 

[AvgGuyIA]

Ruthless Cops Shoot Cow - YouTube
Cop Shoots Dog at Birthday Party - YouTube

Texas Police Officer FIRED After Shooting Family Dog In Back Of The Head - Rains County - YouTube
2014 Extreme Police Brutality in USA - RIP to all innocent ppl - YouTube

Video # 1 - The cow would not move to the sidewalk.

Video # 2 - The dog takes after his mad owner - mad dog.

Video # 3 - Dog, viciously wagging its tail, had to be put down. Deputy only given one bullet by his Sherriff.

Video # 4 - Video compiler was once given a ticket for jaywalking.

 

[Desperado]

With all the security cameras around today, why is it surprising that this is even an issue.
If it is legal for the government to film us, it would also be logical that it is legal for us to film cops.

 

[AvgGuyIA]

With all the security cameras around today, why is it surprising that this is even an issue.
If it is legal for the government to film us, it would also be logical that it is legal for us to film cops.

Thank your local liberals for insisting on big government.

 

[Lakhota]

Who's afraid to film cops?

 

[Darlene]

Ruthless Cops Shoot Cow - YouTube
Cop Shoots Dog at Birthday Party - YouTube

Texas Police Officer FIRED After Shooting Family Dog In Back Of The Head - Rains County - YouTube
2014 Extreme Police Brutality in USA - RIP to all innocent ppl - YouTube

Video # 1 - The cow would not move to the sidewalk.

Video # 2 - The dog takes after his mad owner - mad dog.

Video # 3 - Dog, viciously wagging its tail, had to be put down. Deputy only given one bullet by his Sherriff.

Video # 4 - Video compiler was once given a ticket for jaywalking.

#1: The cow wasn't in the middle of the road, but on the shoulder
#2: Dogs feel the need to protect their people.
#3: Dog was not being violent.
#4: Jaywalking does not justify police brutality.

IN all these videos, the cops were wrong.