Brian D. Kelly: Videotaping the Police Results in Arrest
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Surveillance is so common now that the general public is growing to discard the expectation of privacy. For example, surveillance cameras are on the streets, in shops, in schools… and in some cases, in rest rooms. For security and/or monitoring purposes there may be closed circuit television (CCTV) at work. Even if this video capture of public activities goes against personal sensitivities, it will continue to happen.
The police of Cumberland County (Pennsylvania), however, have another approach. When the police found that Brian D. Kelly was videotaping the police during a traffic stop, the officer arrested Mr Kelly:
“Kelly is charged under a state law that forbids the recording of oral communications without consent. That count carries a penalty of up to 7 years in prison.”
link: Taping was legal, defense attorneys in wiretap case say
Mr Kelly, who is eighteen years old, was put in county jail, until bail was posted. Lawyers seem to agree that court rulings seem to favor Mr Kelly. Nevertheless, it seems as though the police of Cumberland County have a different standard when it comes to issues of privacy and videotaping. And now, Mr Kelly may have a criminal history.
Catherine Forsythe
[tags]brian d. kelly, videotaping, surveillance, cctv, police, arrest, expectation of privacy, criminal history, court ruling[/tags]
4 Comments
Rick Hogan
June 18th, 2007
at 5:52pm
So much for our civil liberties. The government can spy on us citizens all it wants, but if we dare point our cameras in their direction, they throw us in jail.
Rick
John
June 20th, 2007
at 1:19pm
Not only that, but the White House, Bush Administration also deleted their official email messages by the hundreds of thousands, when the NSA was spying on our telecommunication networks, and even passed a law of data retention, including emails.
So the government doesn’t need to be held accountable, they have the right to deny citizens to record and review their actions. Does that seem fair to any American living in a democratic republic?
If this was North Korea, we would all accept we have no rights to review the actions of the government. But, it’s this a FREE country, a place where we the people have rights? Where we the people are suppose to be able to hold accountable our officials who are suppose to be serving the better interest of our society, instead of themselves, serving their own desires?
If video taping the police becomes a crime, out in the public, then you may as well be living in Communist China, because they do the same there, claiming “State Secrets”.
Bob
July 18th, 2007
at 1:14pm
Bush won’t be satisfied till we are all little better than North Korean surfs!
Jason Goyer
August 13th, 2007
at 11:47am
Bush, Bush, Bush…. I don’t like the guy either, but there are hundreds of high ranking officials that make the government function. This isn’t just mean ol’ nasty Bush, it’s the whole system.
The very idea that I may be arrested for video taping a police officer durning a traffic stop is incredulous. The police all have cameras and microphones recording from their cars, so what the hell is the problem is there is an extra set of cameras on the scene? If anything it will only make their case stronger in the event I try to do something stupid like drive away.