{"id":2043,"date":"2014-09-07T23:55:52","date_gmt":"2014-09-07T23:55:52","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/ourlandstoo.org\/?page_id=2043"},"modified":"2017-08-09T17:52:36","modified_gmt":"2017-08-09T17:52:36","slug":"peaceably-filming-on-duty-public-officials-is-an-assumed-right","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/reunitethestates.org\/?page_id=2043","title":{"rendered":"Filming Public Officials is a Well-Established Right"},"content":{"rendered":"<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;\"><strong>\u00a0 <span style=\"color: #0000ff;\">\u00a0 First Amendment considerations arise when you are openly recording the activities of police officers <\/span><\/strong><em>(or other public officials)<\/em><span style=\"color: #0000ff;\"><strong> carrying out their duties in public places. A number of U.S. Courts of Appeals have held that, in such circumstances, the First Amendment protects the right to record audio and video regardless of whether the police\/officials consent. \u00a0This constitutional right would override any state or federal laws that would otherwise prohibit such recording.<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #0000ff; font-size: 14pt; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;\"><strong>\u00a0 \u00a0 Currently, the following U.S. Courts of Appeals have recognized the First Amendment right to record the police and\/or other public officials:<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/reunitethestates.org\/\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/09\/Filming-Court-Officials-1.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-2044\" src=\"https:\/\/reunitethestates.org\/\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/09\/Filming-Court-Officials-1.jpg\" alt=\"Filming Court Officials 1\" width=\"498\" height=\"338\" srcset=\"https:\/\/reunitethestates.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/09\/Filming-Court-Officials-1.jpg 498w, https:\/\/reunitethestates.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/09\/Filming-Court-Officials-1-300x204.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 498px) 100vw, 498px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;\"><strong><a href=\"http:\/\/www.ca1.uscourts.gov\/\">First Circuit<\/a>\u00a0<\/strong><em>(with jurisdiction over Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Puerto Rico, and Rhode Island)<\/em><strong>: see\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/scholar.google.com\/scholar_case?case=10945354769903429853&amp;q=655+F.3d+78&amp;hl=en&amp;as_sdt=2,22\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Glik v. Cunniffe<\/a>, 655 F.3d 78, 85 (1st Cir. 2011) (<span style=\"color: #800000;\">&#8220;[A] citizen&#8217;s right to film government officials, including law enforcement officers, in the discharge of their duties in a public space is a basic, vital, and well-established liberty safeguarded by the First Amendment.&#8221;<\/span>);<\/strong><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;\"><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/reunitethestates.org\/\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/09\/Flming-Court-Officials-2.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-2045\" src=\"https:\/\/reunitethestates.org\/\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/09\/Flming-Court-Officials-2.jpg\" alt=\"Flming Court Officials 2\" width=\"498\" height=\"338\" srcset=\"https:\/\/reunitethestates.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/09\/Flming-Court-Officials-2.jpg 498w, https:\/\/reunitethestates.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/09\/Flming-Court-Officials-2-300x204.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 498px) 100vw, 498px\" \/><\/a><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;\"><strong>\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/scholar.google.com\/scholar_case?case=4821936205672491096&amp;q=iacobucci&amp;hl=en&amp;as_sdt=2,22\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Iacobucci v. Boulter<\/a>, 193 F.3d 14 (1st Cir. 1999) (<span style=\"color: #800000;\">police lacked authority to prohibit citizen from recording commissioners in town hall &#8220;because [the citizen&#8217;s] activities were peaceful, not performed in derogation of any law, and done in the exercise of his First Amendment rights[.]&#8221;<\/span>).<\/strong><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/reunitethestates.org\/\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/09\/Filming-Court-Officials-3.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-2046\" src=\"https:\/\/reunitethestates.org\/\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/09\/Filming-Court-Officials-3.jpg\" alt=\"Filming Court Officials 3\" width=\"498\" height=\"338\" srcset=\"https:\/\/reunitethestates.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/09\/Filming-Court-Officials-3.jpg 498w, https:\/\/reunitethestates.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/09\/Filming-Court-Officials-3-300x204.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 498px) 100vw, 498px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;\"><strong><a href=\"http:\/\/www.ca7.uscourts.gov\/\">Seventh Circuit<\/a>\u00a0<\/strong><em>(with jurisdiction over Illinois, Indiana, and Wisconsin)<\/em><strong>: see\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/scholar.google.com\/scholar_case?case=4027403108062769854&amp;q=aclu+v+alvarez&amp;hl=en&amp;as_sdt=2,22\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">ACLU v. Alvarez<\/a>, 679 F.3d 583, 595 (7th Cir. 2012) (<span style=\"color: #800000;\">&#8220;The act of making an audio or audiovisual recording is necessarily included within the First Amendment&#8217;s guarantee of speech and press rights as a corollary of the right to disseminate the resulting recording.&#8221;<\/span>).<\/strong><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/reunitethestates.org\/\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/09\/Filming-Court-Officials-4.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-2047\" src=\"https:\/\/reunitethestates.org\/\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/09\/Filming-Court-Officials-4.jpg\" alt=\"Filming Court Officials 4\" width=\"498\" height=\"338\" srcset=\"https:\/\/reunitethestates.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/09\/Filming-Court-Officials-4.jpg 498w, https:\/\/reunitethestates.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/09\/Filming-Court-Officials-4-300x204.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 498px) 100vw, 498px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;\"><strong><a href=\"http:\/\/www.ca11.uscourts.gov\/\">Eleventh Circuit<\/a>\u00a0<\/strong><em>(with jurisdiction over Alabama, Florida and Georgia)<\/em><strong>: see\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/scholar.google.com\/scholar_case?case=16398383335009435380&amp;q=212+F.3d+1332&amp;hl=en&amp;as_sdt=2,22\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Smith v. City of Cumming<\/a>, 212 F.3d 1332, 1333 (11th Cir. 2000) (<span style=\"color: #800000;\">&#8220;The First Amendment protects the right to gather information about what public officials do on public property, and specifically, a right to record matters of public interest.&#8221;<\/span>).<\/strong><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/reunitethestates.org\/\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/09\/Filming-Court-Officials-5.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-2048\" src=\"https:\/\/reunitethestates.org\/\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/09\/Filming-Court-Officials-5.jpg\" alt=\"Filming Court Officials 5\" width=\"498\" height=\"338\" srcset=\"https:\/\/reunitethestates.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/09\/Filming-Court-Officials-5.jpg 498w, https:\/\/reunitethestates.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/09\/Filming-Court-Officials-5-300x204.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 498px) 100vw, 498px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;\"><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.ca9.uscourts.gov\/\">Ninth Circuit<\/a>\u00a0<\/strong><em>(with jurisdiction over Alaska, Arizona, California, Guam, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, the Northern Mariana Islands, Oregon, and Washington)<\/em><strong>: see\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/scholar.google.com\/scholar_case?case=1203486802498511272&amp;q=55+F.3d+436&amp;hl=en&amp;as_sdt=2,22\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Fordyce v. City of Seattle<\/a>, 55 F.3d 436, 438 (9th Cir. 1995) (<span style=\"color: #800000;\">assuming a First Amendment right to record the police<\/span>)<\/strong><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/reunitethestates.org\/\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/09\/Filming-Court-Officials-6.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-2049\" src=\"https:\/\/reunitethestates.org\/\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/09\/Filming-Court-Officials-6.jpg\" alt=\"Filming Court Officials 6\" width=\"498\" height=\"338\" srcset=\"https:\/\/reunitethestates.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/09\/Filming-Court-Officials-6.jpg 498w, https:\/\/reunitethestates.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/09\/Filming-Court-Officials-6-300x204.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 498px) 100vw, 498px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;\"><strong><a href=\"http:\/\/scholar.google.com\/scholar_case?q=adkins+limtiaco&amp;hl=en&amp;as_sdt=40000006&amp;case=4854959787595728364&amp;scilh=0\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Adkins v. Limtiaco<\/a><i>,\u00a0<\/i>\u00a0_ Fed. App&#8217;x _, No.\u00a011-17543,\u00a02013 WL 4046720 (9th Cir. Aug. 12, 2013) (<span style=\"color: #800000;\">recognizing\u00a0First Amendment right to photograph police, citing\u00a0<i>Fordyce<\/i><\/span>).<\/strong><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\"><strong><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;\">\u00a0 \u00a0 <a href=\"https:\/\/ag.ny.gov\/\">The Appellate Division of the Superior Court of New Jersey<\/a> likewise recognized the existence of such a right in\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.judiciary.state.nj.us\/opinions\/a4910-10.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Ramos v. Flowers<\/a>, Docket No. A-4910-10T3 (N.J. App. Div. Sept. 21, 2012), relying heavily on the First Circuit&#8217;s reasoning in the\u00a0<i>Glik\u00a0<\/i>case.<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p><strong><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/span><span style=\"color: #0000ff; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\"> \u00a0 Even if you are not within these jurisdictions, <a href=\"https:\/\/reunitethestates.org\/\/?page_id=2806\">the 14th Amendment guarantees &#8220;equal protections of the laws&#8221;<\/a>\u00a0from one State to another. \u00a0So, if one State recognizes a right, it would be discrimination &amp; a violation of one&#8217;s rights to deny someone in another State those same protections. \u00a0This isn&#8217;t to say that your right to fil<\/span><\/span><span style=\"color: #0000ff;\"><span style=\"color: #0000ff; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\">m will not be violated- <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\"><em><span style=\"color: #0000ff; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;\">in all probability\u00a0it will happen to some people<\/span><\/em><\/span><\/span><span style=\"color: #0000ff;\"><span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\"><em><span style=\"color: #0000ff; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/em><\/span><\/span><\/strong><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;\"><strong><span style=\"color: #0000ff;\">until <a href=\"https:\/\/reunitethestates.org\/\/?page_id=3901\">individuals begin actually building their own cases &amp; filing against officials to hold them accountable<\/a>. \u00a0So long as officers don&#8217;t have anyone filing against them for these types of violations, they will likely continue to violate without <a href=\"https:\/\/reunitethestates.org\/\/?page_id=3901\">this liability<\/a> imposed on them.<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p><strong><span style=\"color: #0000ff; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\">\u00a0 \u00a0 No court has\u00a0rejected the existence of such a right.\u00a0 Furthermore, the United States Department of Justice has<\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/span><a style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;\" href=\"http:\/\/www.dmlp.org\/blog\/2012\/dojs-public-statements-provide-road-map-citizens-sue-cop-recording-cases\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">openly stated its position<\/a><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/span><span style=\"color: #0000ff;\">that the First Amendment protects all U.S. citizens who record the activities of the police in public, and has intervened in at least one civil rights lawsuit against police officers to support that First Amendment right.<\/span><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\"> See\u00a0<\/span><\/span><a style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;\" href=\"http:\/\/www.justice.gov\/crt\/about\/spl\/documents\/Sharp_SOI_1-10-12.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Sharp v. Baltimore City Police Dep&#8217;t<\/a><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\">, No. 1:11-cv-02888-BEL (D. Md. Statement of Interest filed January 10, 2012).<\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\"><strong><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;\"><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\">NOTE:<\/span> The First Amendment right to record does NOT give you the right to interfere in the performance of officials&#8217; duties, or violate generally applicable laws.\u00a0You may still face criminal prosecution or civil liability if, while recording, you: interfere with an arrest; trespass into secure government areas or private property; fail to respond to legitimate measures by law enforcement to control riots or disturbances; or otherwise interfere with official activity or violate private rights.[1]<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\"><strong><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;\"><span style=\"color: #0000ff;\">\u00a0 \u00a0 The following music video by B. Dolan\u00a0<em>featuring\u00a0<\/em>Toki Wright, Jasiri X, Buddy Peace, &amp; Sage Francis is called &#8220;FILM THE POLICE&#8221;<\/span>[2]<span style=\"color: #0000ff;\">:<\/span>\u00a0<em><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\">caution<\/span> contains some instances of foul language<span style=\"color: #0000ff;\">:<\/span><\/em><\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"&quot;FILM THE POLICE&quot; B. Dolan ft. Toki Wright, Jasiri X, Buddy Peace, Sage Francis #FILMTHEPOLICE\" width=\"474\" height=\"267\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/hyT1buoyTnY?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"font-size: 24pt; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;\"><strong><span style=\"color: #800080;\">References:<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\"><strong><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;\">[1]: Digital Media Law Project, &#8220;Recording Police Officers and Public Officials&#8221;:\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.dmlp.org\/legal-guide\/recording-police-officers-and-public-officials\">www.dmlp.org\/legal-guide\/recording-police-officers-and-public-officials<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\"><strong><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;\">[2]:\u00a0<span id=\"eow-title\" class=\"watch-title\" dir=\"ltr\" title=\"&quot;FILM THE POLICE&quot; B. Dolan ft. Toki Wright, Jasiri X, Buddy Peace, Sage Francis #FILMTHEPOLICE\">&#8220;FILM THE POLICE&#8221; B. Dolan ft. Toki Wright, Jasiri X, Buddy Peace, Sage Francis #FILMTHEPOLICE:\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=hyT1buoyTnY\">www.youtube.com\/watch?v=hyT1buoyTnY<\/a><\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>\u00a0 \u00a0 First Amendment considerations arise when you are openly recording the activities of police officers (or other public officials) carrying out their duties in public places. A number of U.S. Courts of Appeals have held that, in such circumstances, the First Amendment protects the right to record audio and video regardless of whether the &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/reunitethestates.org\/?page_id=2043\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Filming Public Officials is a Well-Established Right<\/span> <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":2038,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-2043","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/reunitethestates.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2043","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/reunitethestates.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/reunitethestates.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/reunitethestates.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/reunitethestates.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2043"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/reunitethestates.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2043\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4281,"href":"https:\/\/reunitethestates.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2043\/revisions\/4281"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/reunitethestates.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2038"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/reunitethestates.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2043"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}