By Carlos Miller
A man filming police outside the United Nations building in New York City was harassed by an NYPD officer under the Patriot Act.
The female officer first attempts to look at what the man has filmed, but he refuses to show her.
She then beckons for a Secret Service Agent to come harass the guy some more.
It is not clear if the Secret Service Agent ever arrives in the six-minute video, but it is clear that the NYPD officer is clueless about photography rights.
Also, I cannot stress this any harder. If you’re going to film such confrontations, please keep your camera pointed at the subject instead of on the ground.
Here is just a sample of the exchange that took place between the cop and the videographer.
NYPD officer: “I’m telling you that you don’t film our truck.”
Videographer: “I’m not filming the truck. … Even if I am filming the truck, it’s not against the law.”
Videographer: “Am I being detained?”
NYPD officer: “Yes.”
Videographer: “Under what law?”
NYPD officer: “Patriot Act.”
Videographer: “Taking pictures on public property is not against the law.”
NYPD officer: “Not when it comes to frozen zones.”
Videographer: “So this building over here and over there is not public property?”
NYPD officer: “It’s federal property.”
Videographer: “So regular media can take all the pictures they want but I can’t?”
NYPD officer: “They have credentials.”
And here’s the kicker.
NYPD officer: “If you have nothing to hide, you shouldn’t be afraid to show (inaudible).
If the NYPD had nothing to hide, there would have been no such confrontation.
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13 responses so far ↓
1 Craig Joke // Dec 17, 2009 at 4:49 PM
If you had nothing to hide, you wouldn’t mind us searching your house without a warrant. If you had nothing to hide, you wouldn’t mind comming down to the station and answering a few questions without your attorney present. If you had nothing to hide, you wouldn’t mind us tapping your phone lines.
Do we even have a constitution anymore?
2 Frank // Dec 17, 2009 at 6:34 PM
Craig, there are days when I have doubts that the constitution is anything more than toilet paper that cops and others use to wipe off.
As far as pointing a video camera at NYPD, I get the feeling that someone who does that in a situation like this is asking for beat down.
3 Tom // Dec 17, 2009 at 7:40 PM
What exactly is a “frozen zone”?
4 Carlos Miller // Dec 17, 2009 at 7:41 PM
That would be where all common sense from police officers freezes
5 LC // Dec 17, 2009 at 7:56 PM
The idea that somehow photography aids or assists terrorists in planning or plotting attacks is at best ridiculous and at worst lunacy. This attitude towards photography is a “movie plot threat” a term which was originally coined by International Security Expert and author Bruce Schenier, which maintains a blog discussing computer and global security issues here:
On the ridiculous notion of “Movie Plot Threats”:
http://www.schneier.com/essay-087.html
The 9/11 attackers didn’t photograph anything, and neither did any of the terrorists who committed any of the other attacks in Europe.
The interesting article on this here:
“The War on Photography”
http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2008/jun/05/news.terrorism
What scares me is the broadening power of police, and government. We should not allow our civil rights to be eroded.
Here’s a presentation by a criminal defence attorney on why you should never talk to the police.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6wXkI4t7nuc
6 LC // Dec 17, 2009 at 8:01 PM
Almost forgot, the page on “War on Photography” also includes links to an attorney site that provides legal advice to photographers, including a wallet size card on photographers rights.
The link:
http://www.krages.com/phoright.htm
and the wallet card can be found here:
http://www.krages.com/ThePhotographersRight.pdf
KNOW YOUR RIGHTS!
http://www.flexyourrights.org/
7 Jay // Dec 17, 2009 at 9:53 PM
I love how all of these cops who don’t know each other come up with the same bullshit “reasons” why photography isn’t allowed. And when I say “love,” I’m really just singing the yet to be written “Groundhog Day” song.
8 Workingindust // Dec 17, 2009 at 10:19 PM
Quoting from a comment I read somewhere yesterday –
“America, you embarass me daily”
Frozen Zone my ass – More like his frozen brain
9 JR // Dec 17, 2009 at 11:35 PM
Creepy that attitude the cop gives when the cameraman sites constitution. “Yeah right” as if it means nothing to her.
10 Frank Palmer // Dec 18, 2009 at 12:41 AM
From:
http://www.youtube.com/user/cholo2les
August 20, 2009 | 638 views
CORRECTION I was detained for about an hour and a half not two hours for taking pictures of nypd on public property. there is no law stopping me from taking pictures in a public place. they said that I violated some law in the “patriot act” and they couldn’t tell me which one I was violating. After about 45 minutes I began to ask the officer where are the secret service and the officer said they were coming, they never did come. they only let me go after I showed the pictures to some nypd higher ups
11 MrBentor // Dec 18, 2009 at 1:04 AM
Uh… The united nations is not “federal property” and if she tried to claim it was federal property then she is either a dufus or is lying. Even if it was “federal property” it isn’t as we all know, not illegal.
Make her show you her commission card… if NY law requires such… Here if you demand it, the officer is required to display it to you. Without it you have reason to ignore and resist the officer.
12 Dan // Dec 18, 2009 at 1:33 AM
This is over-reactive hysteria at its worst.
Cops are ordered to be vigilant (head on a swivel) for “anything” suspicious and people with cameras are suspects because terrorists “might” take photographs so they can plan to blow shit up. Although probably not a popular concept here, I don’t place blame on the individual officer. Though, there are those that do deserve individual blame.
These confrontations are not imperatives driven by statute, moral positions or by public safety; they are the results of policies fueled by a shared public fear.
It is a witch hunt, similar to the group-pedophilia indictments, convictions and aftermath of Bakersfield, CA (circa 1980′s), which spread like a Crichton-inspired plague across our nation.
It is wrong, illegal and (of more import and concern) extremely detrimental to the common good, which is (of course) why the Constitution exists.
The enforcement arm of our society needs to be trained to recognize the root-causes of and blueprints of hysteria and how best to diffuse it.
Further, we need to criminalize the acts of zealots that use public hysteria as a platform/forum to advance their cause(s) – with (of course) the appropriate application of Mens Rea to acts, which has sooooo been diluted lately.
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