 ICE Agents in Minneapolis After Shooting. PHOTO CREDIT: Chad Davis (https://chaddavis.photography/sets/ice-in-minneapolis/) The fatal shooting of 37-year-old Renee Nicole Good by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent in Minneapolis is proving to be a national ideological Rorschach Test. Some who watch the video of the event see an officer reacting in fear for his life; others, including former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, see a “murder.” As ambiguous as the video may be, imagine if there were no video at all. Would we be better off? At least there is a record that can be examined and debated. Without this video, we would be left with hearsay and fallible memories – weak tools for judging the use of deadly force. Yet according to the Trump administration, the person who recorded this encounter had no right to do so – and may have even committed a crime. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem (hat tip to G.J. Ciaramella, Reason) equated filming officers with “violence” and “doxing,” adding “it’s videotaping them where they’re at when they’re out on operations, encouraging other people to come and to throw things, rocks, bottles.” DHS Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs Tricia McLaughlin said that “videotaping ICE law enforcement and posting photos and videos of them online” is a crime, and that “we will prosecute those who illegally harass ICE agents to the fullest extent of the law.” No one disputes that harassing and threatening officers is a crime. But recording them is not. The right to document public officials performing public duties is well established in federal courts. Seven federal circuits have recognized Americans’ “right to record” – the right to hold up a smartphone and make a video of law enforcement in action. The Fourth Circuit made that explicit in a case involving a passenger who livestreamed a traffic stop. The court held that “livestreaming a police traffic stop is speech protected by the First Amendment,” explaining that “recording police encounters creates information that contributes to discussion about governmental affairs.” We have to agree with Reason’s Ciaramella: “Recording government agents is one of the few tools citizens have to hold state power accountable. Any attempt to define observation as ‘violence’ is not only unconstitutional – it’s authoritarian gaslighting. When a government fears cameras more than crimes, it isn’t protecting the rule of law. It’s protecting itself.” Too many in the Trump administration have slipped into a lazy – and dangerous – syllogism. “Videotaping” law enforcement = “doxing” = “violence” = “terrorism.” We do not discount by any means the need to protect officers. But the logic now coming from Washington is as simple as it is dangerous. You have the right to record the police. There should be no erase button on this principle. Comments are closed.
|
Categories
All
|
RSS Feed