Charges Dropped In PA Video Taping Arrest 177
Cumberland County District Attorney David Freed has reversed himself completely over the charges against Brian Kelly, arrested for wiretapping after videotaping a police stop. Now let's see if they are good enough to compensate Kelly for the 26 hours he spent in jail and the anguish of the cloud over his future caused by a felony arrest. From the article: "... [DA] Freed said his decision will affect not only Brian Kelly, 18, but also will establish a policy for police departments countywide. 'When police are audio- and video-recording traffic stops with notice to the subjects, similar actions by citizens, even if done in secret, will not result in criminal charges,' Freed said yesterday. 'The law itself might need to be revised.'"
People in the USA are sometimes blessed... (Score:5, Insightful)
Nifong (Score:5, Insightful)
I wonder if the downfall of Mike Nifong has given prosecutors a dose of humility.
Re:People in the USA are sometimes blessed... (Score:5, Insightful)
Still too much CYA (Score:5, Insightful)
[Freed] said the officer who charged Kelly acted in a "professional manner."
Avoiding accountability by throwing someone in jail for recording how you do your job is NOT professional. Rather, it is the act of a petty tyrant on a power trip who, if left unchecked, will most likely end up harming the public in other ways in the future. The citizens of Pennsylvania deserve better than this from their law enforcement agents.
Cloud over his future caused by a felony arrest (Score:5, Insightful)
The *connotation*, however, is becoming increasingly negative, as is the inference when you refuse to reply, or respond that you have not been convicted of any crimes. (I started to type "have no convictions, but it got very confusing very fast!)
And no, I personally have neither convictions nor arrests.
KeS
Re:Still too much CYA (Score:3, Insightful)
Negative effect from this (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:What cloud of his future? (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:Nifong (Score:4, Insightful)
Re:People in the USA are sometimes blessed... (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:Still too much CYA (Score:4, Insightful)
P ought to get out of civics class and into the real world.
Re:Mod This Up (Score:3, Insightful)
Paul B.
Re:Still too much CYA (Score:5, Insightful)
Contrary to your statement, officers are generally not obligated to enforce any particular law. If they were obligated to enforce every infraction of every law they ever witnessed, their entire day would consist of arresting everyone violating the speed limit directly in front of the police station, they'd never make it three blocks down the street, and many more important laws would be broken on streets with no police station.
Police officers are expected to use intelligent discretion to enforce the laws which will have the greatest impact in improving the quality of life of the community. That means some prioritization is necessary. Arresting murderers and rapists is an excellent use of police resources, and is quite easy to justify. Arresting jaywalkers and people who litter on the sidewalk is a poor use of police resources, and is harder to justify. Each arrest takes time, effort, and money which could be better used elsewhere in the community. Police officers' time is particularly valuable because just by walking or driving down a street, they can deter crime! A key question for police priorities could be, "is what I'm doing more or less productive than simply cruising down the street?" As a taxpayer and a citizen, I have an interest in police using their time wisely. An officer arresting someone for videotaping a publicly-accessible event was clearly not using his publicly-funded time wisely, just as setting up a strict speed trap in front of the police station is also not a wise use of resources.
Furthermore, I speculate that this officer was probably not aware that the wiretapping law could be used in this case. I wouldn't expect a traffic cop to be well-versed in wiretapping laws. He arrested the guy with the camera, then, according to the original article, "The wiretap charge was filed after consultation with a deputy district attorney." Chances are he was embarrassed about having lost his temper ("He said he held the camera in plain view and turned it on when the officer yelled at his pal") so he arrested the guy, probably for "disorderly conduct" or some other catch-all, then went to the DA's office to see if there was anything better to charge him with. Maybe the guy's pal was being a jerk and deserved to be yelled at. But if it was justified, the cop had nothing to hide, and in either case he had no legitimate reason to go after the guy with the camera.
For the record, I got an A in civics class... I'm a nerd, after all!
Re:Cloud over his future caused by a felony arrest (Score:4, Insightful)
I certainly would. I would gladly spend a month in Jail to live in a nation where "The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated" was more than just words on paper.
ID is about verifying who you are. Laws concern behavior, not identity. Police should act when they see illegal or behavior likely to be illegal, or when they have reasonable suspicion, supported by oath or affirmation and signed by a judge.
Police are Law Enforcement Officers, and there is no higher law (in the US) than the Constitution. As such, when police check ID in a manner inconsistent with the fourth amendment, they are in fact violating the law, and not doing their jobs.
You imply that Somalia is like it is solely because IDs aren't checked. Such argument is intellectually dishonest, and neglects differences in culture, and corruption in government. The United States, if less IDs were checked, would have fewer people in jail. It would, on the other hand, be more free - reading the writings of some of the founding fathers will quickly show that this is by design. The government's job in obtaining convictions and performing surveillance is difficult by design.
Re:cloud over his future? (Score:1, Insightful)
Re:Cloud over his future caused by a felony arrest (Score:1, Insightful)
False, wrong, incorrect, rubbish!
http://www.snopes.com/politics/religion/holocaust
"Teaching of the Holocaust is already compulsory in schools at Key Stage 3 (ages 11 to 14), and it will remain so in the new KS3 curriculum from September 2008."
Why Stop with cops? (Score:3, Insightful)
The solution... (Score:3, Insightful)
Lest we forget... Harry Truman went bankrupt. JFK fooled around on his wife. Richard Nixon had a serious affinity for alcohol. Ronald Reagan was (horrors!) a Democrat. Comedian Tim Allen was arrested for drugz. Martha Stewart was convicted of securities fraud. G. Gordon Libby was in prison after Watergate. Rush Limbaugh admitted illegal use of prescription drugz. W. was... well, farkit, go look it up.
When everyone has a black mark against "their permanent record," as my sixth-grade teacher called it, then we're all equals again and we can forget this pseudo-puritanical horse dung.
When mere accusations are enough to blight your life, we're already in 1984. Oh, wait... what?
Re:cloud over his future? (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:Cloud over his future caused by a felony arrest (Score:3, Insightful)
Are you saying that the UK is a police state? In that case, which countries are not police states?
On the other hand, being detained by the police is not an every day occurence for most people. My point is that in the big picture of life, it's nothing. It's down among the dental visits, fender benders and sprained ankles. Not in the same league as divorce, bankruptcy and cancer. Or the sorts of things that happen in actual police states.
Orwell does not have a monopoly on paradox. In particular, the paradox of freedom requiring boundaries is an ancient one. Every man would like to walk the street in absolute freedom, knowing that nobody can mess with him. This isn't possible for most of us on this earth. With too weak a police presence, we're plagued with bullies, drunks and muggers. With too strong a police presence, we are constantly watched; we get stopped for trivial things. Most civilized communities have achieved a reasonable balance, and yes, this reasonable balance means that sometimes an innocent person is detained by the police.