By Carlos Miller
In what will be a test for the future of First Amendment rights on the internet, two alleged gang members are facing five years in a Florida prison for flashing gang signs on Myspace.
The two men were arrested under a law that was passed last year – which was sponsored by a retired Miami police officer - that criminalizes the use of electronic media to “promote” gangs.
Elvis Rodriguez, 30, flashed Latin Kings hand signals on his MySpace.com page and called himself “King Kamel,” according to his arrest report.
Richard Figueroa-Santiago, 22, used his MySpace page to post pictures of friends making “Eastside” hand gestures, detectives said.
If I wasn’t too lazy right now, I would post a picture of myself with my middle finger directed at Rep. William D. Snyder, R-Stuart, the former cop who sponsored this bill.
Instead, I will post a picture of the guy who flipped me off a few weeks ago. He was an asshole but he was well within his rights to flip me off.
And his actions are no different than any other asshole who flashes “gang signs.”
The two alleged gang members were arrested in one of those high profile sweeps that net more publicity than actual results.
Both were nabbed in November as part of “Operation Firewall,” a slate of arrests by the Lee County Sheriff’s Office that netted 15 people, including a Bonita Springs felon charged with stockpiling weapons, six juveniles with flashy Myspace.com accounts and a pair of middle-aged men accused of recruiting gang members.
As Miami CBS4 reporter Jim Defede points out, we should be wary of high profile sweeps with cool sounding names. He recently reported about a press conference in Miami where cops were bragging about all the arrests they made during “Operation Dead End.”
Looking more closely at the charges, it was obvious the chief was padding his stats. Included in those 53 individuals were two homeless guys, one of whom was arrested for public intoxication. Another of the defendants was detained for not having a valid driver’s license. Seven were charged with simple trespassing. There were also individuals arrested for disorderly conduct and for resisting arrest without violence.
So it is obvious that Florida cops are trying to justify all the federal money that is granted to them – through democratic and republican administrations – by making bullshit arrests.
If the gangs are truly a problem down here, then surely they can conjure up stronger charges against them than the simple act of flashing gang signs.
After all, the heil Hiter sign is protected speech, as much as it offends. And the neo-Nazi groups – as thuglike and ganglike as they appear – are protected under the First Amendment.
So until the two alleged suspects are accused of murder or making specific threats against somebody, then I will back them up.
Because as it is now, the real gangs are the men in blue.
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23 responses so far ↓
1 Bastian // Aug 5, 2009 at 5:11 AM
In Germany, flashing “Heil Hitler” is a federal crime, which can lead to some months in prison…
2 NYCPhotorights // Aug 5, 2009 at 5:49 AM
We are NOT in Germany!!!
3 Lorraine Sumrall // Aug 5, 2009 at 7:18 AM
Gang in Blue, oh how true.
4 Difster // Aug 5, 2009 at 10:38 AM
This should be thrown out of court. It will be really tough to prove that flashing a gang sign had the intent of recruiting rather than just having pride in their set.
The sad part is, most people would say it’s fine to find any excuse they can to arrest gang members. They just don’t understand that the same excuses used for unjustified arrests of gang members can be used to arrest anyone else at any time.
The police need to do actual police work, not on stupid fishing expeditions.
5 Michaelk42 // Aug 5, 2009 at 1:15 PM
William D. Snyder has to look out for HIS gang, though.
And who gets to determine what qualifies as a “gang sign” anyway?
Oh wait, the people making arrests and prosecuting, handy that way.
6 Pinandpuller // Aug 5, 2009 at 1:18 PM
There are a lot of people getting arrested lately for the content of their internet sites.
These kinds of laws are as dangerous as hate crime legislation. No one should be in jail for what they think.
7 xdamousex // Aug 5, 2009 at 3:35 PM
Carlos, is something up with your e-mail? I’m getting bounce-back messages when I try to send you something. The messages say that your account has been suspended.
8 Huck Finne // Aug 5, 2009 at 5:23 PM
Bastian,
Not only are we not in Germany, but we have the US Constitution compared to their Basic Law. The Basic Law was written following the Third Reich, while our Constitution was written following a revolution against a domineering government. Hence, we value free speech to a degree Germans don’t.
We also allow consider computer generated child porn to be protected speech because free speech is so important; it’s importance it part of how we the people are constituted in our social contract.
9 Jon Quimbly // Aug 5, 2009 at 5:55 PM
“This should be thrown out of court. It will be really tough to prove that flashing a gang sign had the intent of recruiting rather than just having pride in their set.”
That law has got to be challenged. All we can do is hope they get actual lawyers, ACLU hopefully, instead of a micro-slice of some overworked Legal Aid Society lawyer’s time.
10 NYCPhotorights // Aug 5, 2009 at 11:24 PM
@Huck
We are already on a slippery slope to the de-facto repeal of the first amendment. I fully understand child porn laws that protect REAL LIVE children but this guy was arrested for possession of COMIC BOOKS:
http://iowaindependent.com/15560/iowa-child-porn-case-has-comic-book-collectors-reeling
11 Scott Chamness // Aug 6, 2009 at 12:36 AM
You’d think the cops would have something better to do with their time than make bogus arrests like this.
People at my old high school used to make gang signs because they they thought they were funny. Sounds like there needs to be a high profile raid of all high schools around the country, as everyone flashing a gang symbol is obviously a criminal.
Lame.
12 genewitch // Aug 6, 2009 at 2:40 AM
oh shit, i’ve flashed a gang sign in Los Angeles… Downtown, even…
TO THE GAS CHAMBER WITH ME!
13 Robert Watt // Aug 6, 2009 at 3:37 AM
What if you get picked out flashing a gang sign (or what might be) under a city survelance system. Oh well if the antibulling act passes the senate the internet is gone anyway.
14 Huck Finne // Aug 6, 2009 at 9:09 AM
NYCPhotorights,
While I agree with you that we are on a slippery slops, it appears to me that the man in Iowa got bad legal advice. I’m not a lawyer, but it would seem that the Supreme Court’s ruling in Ashcroft v. Free Speech Coalition would protect his manga since no children were hurt in its creation. Because we have the First Amendment we have such a high standard of hurting children to be needed in order to restrict speech and the case the children are hurt by grown men looking at artificial child porn is dubious.
My wife actually worked on the equivalent law for the UK Parliament and, because they don’t have the First amendment, the fact that actual children are potentially hurt by adults becoming more inclined to engage in pedophilia following looking at artificial children is enough to outlaw some speech.
15 NYCPhotorights // Aug 6, 2009 at 11:16 AM
@ HuckFinne:
The logic astounds me sometime. I like horror movies yet I do not go around re-enacting the scenes. Perhaps that is why I don’t understand the logic behind laws that prohibit comic books or drawings.
16 xdamousex // Aug 6, 2009 at 11:58 AM
Sounds to me like Virginia’s tourism agency should be tossed in prison:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/20358437/
17 Peter, Paul and Mary // Aug 6, 2009 at 12:19 PM
You want to eliminate gangs, cops? Legalize all drugs. Plain and simple. No more drugs, no more turf wars, no more deaths and no more gangs to deal the drugs because one will be able to go to the store and get what they want. End of story. It’s so simple, yet hardly anyone can see. You won’t end these gangs by violating their rights.
18 Richard Aberdeen // Aug 6, 2009 at 12:53 PM
Given all of the funding floating around to help various aspects of the economy, I would like to challenge the Obama Administration to set aside a few billion to help America’s homeless veterans. This should be a no-brainer non-partisan effort that both conservatives, moderates and liberals could easily embrace without violating their own personal politics.
Link to homeless veterans video: Most photographs taken on Skid Row Los Angeles in 2006. There is no reason at all why a nation as wealthy as our own can’t take care of our veterans any better than to leave many of them languishing on Skid Row, often suffering from PTSD and resulting severe sleep deprivation, physical and mental illness.
BOULEVARD
http://freedomtracks.com/videoboulevard.wmv
19 tara // Aug 10, 2009 at 6:21 PM
I am photographer and i take pics of everything fromanit war to gangs to what ever, there are many speaches out there i thin a simple sigh proves nothing other then they make a sighn for the gang they are in sorta like a reporter has their companys logo on their equipment. i dont think it is that powerful enouf to get people to join. i know that some gangs you have to prove your of worth to be in from beat downs to what ever. once your in your in a huge family that stands by you. so do we arest a scott for his kilt as he wears his crest colors ? do we stop school uniforms at private schools. so that they are not promoteing the school? i mean really its a picture. i think we are to anal about things we are not standing up for the things that really mater, like children in the streets of the sa starving. woman on the streets selling them selves to feed self or family. we choke welfare into people we dont show a way out for them, then we condem them for using the system we shove down their mouths. so let these men go its a picture if you dont like it don tlook is it gonna hurt you. i amm related to john adams who came up with the decleration of independence who sat next to so many other men and drew up the our independence. just as amendments where also made. now we have people trying to make new ones to suite them selves. the law states freedom of speach and no matter what the law makers say it will never over turn what has been in place for years and years. lets fix the real issues..
20 ALL BE DAMNED // Aug 11, 2009 at 12:45 AM
hmmm didnt we leave this kind of shit in europe
what 200 years ago now, I belive it says at the end of the constitution
LIFE LIBERTY AND THE PERSUIT OF HAPPIENESS
not put all who disagree with me on the chopping block cause their diffrent, show a diffrent view
Hell even the US army has a GANG sign ITS CALLED A SALUTE
21 Cop GANGS // Aug 11, 2009 at 11:06 PM
We will rise as a nation and run all of the corrupt cops out of this country! You stop taking away these peoples rights to freedom of speech, expression, right to have their own opinion even if it envolves EXPOSING cops ILLEGAL BEHAVIOR. WE pay your salary cops, NOT the mafia. The people do and we will stand together and fight to take you from your arrogant pedistal of position making people’s lives hell that dare to stand up to your arrogance and criminalism!
22 Cop GANGS // Aug 11, 2009 at 11:08 PM
We will rise as a nation and run all of the corrupt cops out of this country! You stop taking away these peoples rights to freedom of speech, expression, right to have their own opinion even if it envolves EXPOSING cops ILLEGAL BEHAVIOR. WE pay your salary cops, NOT the mafia. The people do and we will stand together and fight to take you from your arrogant pedistal of position making people’s lives hell that exercised their rights! Take your paws off them and let them go or face CIVIL WAR!
23 LarryJohnson // Aug 13, 2009 at 2:53 PM
As a previous poster mentioned, free speech is being curtailed in the US under the overly broad “child” pornography law in the US. The international standard is that child pornography is videos and photographs of actual small children being sexually assaulted. The US law goes beyond that description and outlaws media that is of young adults under the age of 18 engaged in completely normal and natural sexual acts. This would include the 18 year old Marine in a combat zone engaging in cybersex with his 17 year old girlfriend (or even wife) via a webcam or any other non-commercial consensual acts. (Interesting to note that the age of consent in the US ranges from 14 to 18 with most adolescent psychologists believing it should be 15.)
Unless it can be proved by reason, facts and empirical evidence that speech is harmful and unreasonably harmful, then it must not be outlawed or in anyway restricted. The freedom of speech, right of privacy, equal protection, etc. of young adults have been violated in the US and as a result cruel and unusual punishments (coupled with unfair trials due to media publicity, gross ignorance of human sexuality and prudishness by jurors) have been inflicted upon citizens without any evidence that what they did, what they looked at, etc., was in any way harmful.
The only sexual activity (including media expressions of sexuality) that the government should outlaw is that which is unambiguously non consensual. The law must never be used to enforce religious doctrine or cultural mores.
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