More and more people have taken to their phones to monitor and record police behavior. And many of them face ongoing police harassment in retaliation. This is unconstitutional.
At a time when the public is outraged and sickened that Black men and women are killed by police in too many incidents, punishing people for documenting abuses is just unacceptable.
Join PEN America, People Demanding Action, and the ACLU and tell the Department of Justice to investigate this troubling trend of unconstitutional police retaliation and enforce DOJ policies on First Amendment rights.
Just 24 hours after posting a video of officers fatally shooting Alton Sterling, Chris LeDay says he was arrested by at least ten police officers. Some officers were carrying M-16 assault rifles. LeDay’s arrest warrant referenced old traffic tickets.
Philando Castile’s fiancée, Lavish “Diamond” Reynolds, was handcuffed and taken for questioning immediately after recording her husband-to-be’s death at the hands of an officer. Reynolds told reporters that police confiscated her phone and that she was denied water and food during a long night in detention.
The First Amendment protects us all from being punished for collecting or disseminating information related to government misconduct. Tell the Justice Department to hold police accountable to the Constitution.
Bystanders who filmed the arrests and deaths of Freddie Gray and Eric Garner have described similar police harassment and abuse. In some cases the retaliation has continued for months after an incident.
These allegations suggest that police officers are punishing people for documenting police brutality. In the age of camera phones and social media, police must receive training on the rights of citizen journalists. And these rights must be guaranteed to all.
Tell U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch to investigate police retaliation against people who record the police and to guarantee their First Amendment rights.
