Police must apologize to man who taped traffic stops

[Big Don]

Police must apologize to man who taped traffic stops Thursday, November 20, 2008 7:57 AM EST
The Pottstown Mercury
Excerpt:

By Michael Hays, mhays@pottsmerc.com

SPRING CITY — Two local police departments have agreed to apologize for citing a man who took video footage of officers' traffic stops in early 2007.

Officials representing East Vincent and Spring City recently agreed to a settlement with Richard Hookway of East Vincent. The municipalities agreed to update officer training, write letters of apology and each pay $3,200 for the plaintiff's legal expenses.

On Feb. 19, 2007, Spring City police officers asked Hookway to step out of his vehicle after he was seen filming a traffic stop from a distance, according to the Pennsylvania chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union. Police then handcuffed Hookway, placed him in a police car and searched his vehicle, said ACLU staff attorney Mary-Catherine Roper.

Two similar incidents involving both departments occurred Jan. 19 and Feb. 1, 2007, but the East Vincent man was not handcuffed or searched in those cases, Roper said.

Hookway received citations for disorderly conduct and harassment, according to the ACLU.

 

[jarrod]

good!

if the state can watch us, we should definately watch the state.

jf

 

[Frostbite]

Maybe they'll be on their best behavior if they know they can be videotaped.

 

[Big Don]

Ignorance of the law is no excuse, especially when you are charged with enforcing the law.

 

[arnisador]

Crime scene photographer finds himself on cops' bad side

"My job is to get to these scenes really, really quickly," said Anzaldi, a freelancer who sells his photos and videotapes to TV stations and newspapers, including the Tribune. "I'm usually the first photographer there, and I get hassled by cops every day."

He's been doing it for years without a major dust-up, but in the last month, he's been arrested twice, raising eyebrows among veteran journalists around town as well as lawyers who deal in constitutional issues.

In sad counterpoint to this story, this ran in the same paper:

Ex-cop's former partner testifies of theft on the job
FBI says officers took $30,000

Officers carried a little crack cocaine to plant on suspects when searches came up empty and stole cash from drug dealers during raids and traffic stops. They also routinely paid informants, falsified reports, lied in court and even kicked back cash to a judge for pushing through a bogus warrant, Doroniuk testified Wednesday in federal court.

 

[zeeberex]

Maybe they'll be on their best behavior if they know they can be videotaped.

It is NOT illegal to tape the police, suck it up.

 

[BanannaSmoothie]

w00t, ACLU for the win!

 

[BrandonLucas]

Just wondering about this...

is that a state-by-state thing? Or is that a national ruling?

 

[Tez3]

Most police officers I know lurve the camera lol, we've had a spate of television documentaries following officers around, now if there's a camera around they get the comb and mirror out. They're more liable to demand to be filmed! it's good though to see what police officers put up with and no these officers aren't armed.
http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=LKt0eqDuqew&feature=related

 

[Frostbite]

It is NOT illegal to tape the police, suck it up.

Huh? I meant the police would be better behaved if they knew they were being filmed.