Tag: police

Sixteen Years in Prison for Videotaping the Police?

Posted by on July 27, 2010

From the Maryland ACLU website:

The ACLU of Maryland is defending Anthony Graber, who potentially faces sixteen years in prison if found guilty of violating state wiretap laws because he recorded video of an officer drawing a gun during a traffic stop.  In a trend that we've seen across the country, police have become  increasingly hostile to bystanders recording their actions.  You can read some examples here, here and here.

However, the scale of the Maryland State Police reaction to Anthony Graber's video is unprecedented.  Once they learned of the video on YouTube, Graber's parents house was raided, searched, and four of his computers were confiscated.  Graber was arrested, booked and jailed.  Their actions are a calculated method of intimidation.  Another person has since been similarly charged under the same statute.

The wiretap law being used to charge Anthony Graber is intended to protect private communication between two parties.  According to David Rocah, the ACLU attorney handling Mr. Graber's case, "To charge Graber with violating the law, you would have to conclude that a police officer on a public road, wearing a badge and a uniform, performing his official duty, pulling someone over, somehow has a right to privacy when it comes to the conversation he has with the motorist."

Occupants of Tent City in Fresno Defend Their Homes

Posted by on January 28, 2010

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For more information, see this IndyBay article

LAPD officers won’t be charged in MacArthur Park melee

Posted by on November 1, 2009

The Los Angeles Times is reporting that LAPD officers won’t be charged for rioting at the 2007 May Day event.

Illinois Cop Beats Learning Disabled Kid Because His Shirt Was Untucked

Posted by on October 10, 2009

For more on this, visit the Fresno Undercurrent website.

Hey, Mr. President!

Posted by on July 24, 2009

Hey, Mr. President! While you’re out there looking around at police conduct in the arrest of Harvard professor Henry Louis Gates Jr., please take a look around your own house. Though singularly reprehensible, the stupid actions of the police at Cambridge pale when compared to the systemic abuses and unconstitutional behavior that prevail within a police agency under your direct control – Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

G20 Protests in London

Posted by on April 1, 2009

Same shit, different uniforms…