In January, we brought
you news of an interesting case in federal court in Baltimore in
which a Maryland citizen, Christopher Sharp, sued the Baltimore police
department for confiscating his cell phone when he'd used it to videotape the
arrest of his friend at a horseracing event. The U.S.
Justice Department, as we reported, filed a brief in the case -
which it is not a party to - supporting Sharp. "The right to engage in and
disseminate speech relating to government misconduct is not diminished when the
government actors are police officers," the Justice Department wrote.
Fast forward three
months, on the nose, and we now tell you about a case in Suffolk County, New
York, in which Philip Datz, a photojournalist, has sued the local police
department for confiscating his video camera after filming police activity in
July. Datz was arrested and charged with obstructing governmental administration.
While those charges were dismissed, Datz on Wednesday filed a lawsuit in
federal court in the Eastern District of New York, saying the police
department violated his free speech rights and conducted an unreasonable search
and seizure.
Who does Datz, who is
represented by law firm Davis Wright Tremaine and the New York Civil Liberties
Union, quote in the complaint? The Justice Department. Datz, in his 34-page
complaint, cited the DOJ brief in the Baltimore case, saying the right to
record police officers is "consistent with our fundamental notions of
liberty, promote the accountability of our government officers, and instill
public confidence in the police officers who serve us daily.'"
In a
statement, the Suffolk County Police Department said that, while it can't
comment on the specifics of the litigation, the department's policy is
"members of the media shall not be precluded from observing incidents,
producing recorded media and commenting regarding an incident."