Slashdot Mirror
NH Man Arrested For Videotaping Police.. Again
OhPlz writes "Back in 2006, a resident of New Hampshire's second largest city was arrested while at the police station attempting to file a complaint against officers. His crime? He had video tape evidence of the officers' wrongdoings. According to the police, that's wiretapping. After world wide attention, the police dropped the charges. His complaint was found to be valid, but the evidence never saw the light of day. Well, guess what? Round two. There are differing reports, but again the police arrested Mr. Gannon and again, they seized his video camera. This time it's 'falsifying evidence' because he tried to hand off the camera, most likely to protect its contents. If there's the potential of police wrongdoing, how is it that the law permits the police to seize the evidence?"
... I reckon "die" is all that's left.
Dog is my co-pilot.
It's quite obvious. Cops are here to serve and protect, themselves, above all else. You don't take videotaped evidence of police wrongdoing to the police, that's the last thing you do. You think there would have been riots in LA had there not been a helicopter overhead filming police beating the shit out of Rodney King? Dashcam footage of that beating would have never seen the light of day. First thing you do when you have video evidence of police wrongdoing, you upload it to the internet. Plain and simple.
No, we're moving toward awareness of the police state we are already living in.
If people, especially authorities can't be recorded when in public, then there is nothing to prevent them from abusing their authority, doing anything they wish, and lying about it. I most places around the US, the police video tape the public every time they stop a vehicle. The public has the same right, no matter what laws they try to create or enforce to prevent you from taping them. When they're in public, you have the right to record their actions. If not, then you're already living in a police state.
make imaginary.friends COUNT=100 VISIBLE=false
"Gannon was charged with resisting arrest, simple assault on a police officer and disorderly conduct."
The original charge seems to be disorderly conduct. Whatever he shouted at the police while they were driving by, plus whatever he said prior to being tackled is probably what the disorderly conduct was about.
If you ask me, they probably would have arrested him for saying "Booo!"
I've learned not to yell anything at cops.
I guess we were lucky we didn't get beat up, tazed, maced and put in jail like this guy.
That's the wrong lesson. What you should have learned is that people with power tend to abuse it, even for the most trivial of things.
When information is power, privacy is freedom.
No, we are 100% IN a police state right now.
The final brick in that particular wall was the aftermath of 9/11, when the nation as a whole suddenly became obsessed with safety.