By Carlos Miller
All Joe N. wanted was for the deputy to slow down in his residential neighborhood.
But for that simple request, a Bexar County sheriff’s deputy demanded his identification and made him stand in front of his squad car’s camera while he conducted a background search and inquired if there were any warrants out on the 30-year-old man.
And when nothing came up, Deputy Sedilla called for two other deputies who escalated the intimidation after arriving on the scene in front of Joe N.’s home just outside the San Antonio city limits.
But Joe N. refused to be intimidated, even snapping photos of the deputies after they ordered him not to take photos.
This is how he described the exchange in a phone interview with Photography is Not a Crime Tuesday night.
Deputy Sedilla: “You can’t take photos.”
Joe N: “Are we in China? As far as I know we can take pictures.”
Deputy Sedilla: “Put that camera away.”
Joe N: “No.”
Two more deputies arrived, including a Sgt. Garza, who threatened him with arrest if he posted the pictures on the internet.
“I asked, ‘arrested for what?’ but he just turned and walked away.”
Joe N. sent me the photos to be posted on the internet. We’ll see if Garza follows through on his promise.
Joe N., who lives in a cul de sac in a middle class neighborhood, initially posted his story on another forum not related to photographers’ rights. He is the second Texas photographer to stand up for his civil rights in the last few weeks after being ordered by police to not take photos.
It all started Monday night when he arrived home and noticed Deputy Sedilla pull out of his neighbor’s house driving about 15 miles over the posted 25 mph speed limit, he said.
“I flag him down and he stops and asks, ‘Is there a problem’,” Joe N. said.
“I ask, ‘Why are you speeding through my neighborhood?’,” he said.
But Sedilla stepped out of the car and demanded his identification. Eventually, the deputy ordered him to stand in front of the squad car in direct line of the dashboard camera.
When the two other deputies arrived, Joe N. said he was having a cell phone conversation with a friend but the sergeant ordered him to hang up.
“I said, ‘No, this is going to be the word of three officers against my word, this is my only witness’.”
The deputies eventually left but not before going to his neighbor’s house, where Sedilla had been earlier, to get them to sign an affidavit that swore that they did nothing wrong.
“My neighbors refused to sign it,” he said.
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I am a multimedia journalist who has been fighting a lengthy legal battle after having photographed Miami police against their wishes in Feb. 2007. Please help the fight by donating to my Legal Defense Fund in the top left sidebar. To keep updated on the latest articles, join my networks at Facebook, Twitter and Friendfeed.
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13 responses so far ↓
1 genewitch // Mar 11, 2009 at 6:42 AM
crime stoppers… thoughtcrime, maybe?
The affidavit… that’s a class act.
2 Scott Chamness // Mar 11, 2009 at 8:13 AM
Haha, Nice job Joe! Did the exact right thing. Put those police in their place. Speeding through a residential area, and then threatening arrest, how dare they. They wimped out though, fail.
3 John // Mar 11, 2009 at 8:19 AM
Some of these cops blow my mind.
It’s like they haven’t changed at all from the morally questionable football playing bully who slept through civics class in high school.
You know who is afraid of the light? Criminals and cockroaches… not good cops.
4 the bulldog // Mar 11, 2009 at 9:00 AM
kudos to joe n!
5 Simon Jester // Mar 11, 2009 at 9:26 PM
Unless the officers were in the process of investigating a crime, a Terry Stop, Joe N’s Constitutional rights were violated. In Hiibel Vs the State of Nevada, the Supreme Court decided that presenting your ID just on the whim of an officer is not allowed. The Supreme Court decided that the officer may ask your name, but not ID is required. If he was suspected of a crime, asking the officer about that should have rendered a crime name. This is blatant, illegal harassment.
6 Kim M. // Mar 12, 2009 at 1:52 AM
Hey Carlos, Way to go. We’ve covered several of your stories now on our SoCal Martial Law Alerts (SCMLA) Podcast. Let us know if you’d like to be listed as one of our sponsors. Keep up the good work! Peace, Kim M., Organizer, Carrie J., Co-Organizer
7 Curtis Copeland // Mar 12, 2009 at 8:53 AM
A similar incident occurred to me while photographing in South Florida. I was taking landscape and pictures on a public street and a police officer gave me a hard time. He actually fingerprinted me and said he was going to run them though interpol! A second officer showed up and threatened to arrest me multiple times. Hey, I know our Policemen are trying to protect us, but when I tell them I have business cards a website and that I am a professional photographer and they don’t even listen….
At some point I kept hoping common sense would kick in.
Ah, such is the life of a professional photographer….
8 Joel // Mar 13, 2009 at 4:16 PM
Here’s a fun thought, to give this incident another round of attention and fun:
Research any crimes or police calls that may have happened in the city that night. Better yet if you can find out if response time lagged on any serious calls that night.
Because, meanwhile, multiple cars were backing up a bs power trip against a photographer.
9 usmc // Mar 20, 2009 at 10:52 AM
to waste this much time, effort, and film to prove what? that you were convicted before a judge and jury,,lettt ittt goooo… find something better to do with your time.
10 Rizzin // Mar 20, 2009 at 12:34 PM
Assuming your talking to and about Carlos here, if not you need to be more clear in your posts.
Well USMC if you are what you are claiming to be with those initials then how much time did you “Waste” doing the same thing Carlos is, protecting the US Constitution?
What I see Carlos doing to trying to bring to as many peoples attention as he can the abuse of authority and undermining of the rights of the people protected (NOT you notice GRANTED) by the Bill of Rights. Thats worth a fair amount of time in my book.
11 Ryan // Apr 3, 2009 at 10:40 AM
Hey, I live in Bexar County, in San Antonio actually, and I’m actually disgusted that my tax money is going towards these policemen… Can we really no longer depend on them when it comes to our personal freedom?
12 Fred // Jun 3, 2009 at 12:39 AM
“Two more deputies arrived, including a Sgt. Garza, who threatened him with arrest if he posted the pictures on the internet. I asked, ‘arrested for what?’ but he just turned and walked away.”
Sgt. Garza committed the felony crime of attempted extortion. Please make out an affidavit and submit it to a judge.
13 elvezz // Jan 25, 2010 at 7:07 PM
I live in SA and was a TV photojournalist here for 15 years. Bexar County Deputies are a joke and always have been. My confrontations with SAPD and BCSD were many. Lesson learned, always always roll on everything. Never turn off your camera. I used to use the line, this camera is on for both our protection. That usually made them at least pause.
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