Arizona To Punish Filming Of Dirty Cops!

Cops are giving more ways to provoke unlawful arrests.

Well let the Supreme Court does rule in favor of Arizona, it will be illegal to film public servants like the police. Arizona governor Karen Ducey has signed into law a bill that requires individuals to stay back 8 ft when they are recording law enforcement. 

Now people can be criminally charged with interfering with police duty if they film. So that means if police officers commit violent acts against arrested individuals or immigrants, you got at least be as far as a balcony to record the encounter. 

Almost certainly this will be challenged in state court and then federal court. 

And as soon as it arrives to the Supreme Court, the 6-3 decision will uproot freedom of the press, freedom of speech, unlawful detainment, and police liability.

Under the new law, it is a misdemeanor if someone keeps recording, after getting a verbal warning to stop. There are, however, some exceptions to the law, including if the person recording is the one being questioned by police.

While supporters say the law is meant to protect law enforcement from harm or distraction, critics say the law is unconstitutional, and does nothing to enhance transparency.

The original proposal from Republican state lawmaker Karen Kavanagh made it illegal to record within 15 feet of an officer interacting with someone unless the officer gave permission. The revised bill was approved on a 31-28 party-line vote Feb. 23 and lowered the distance to 8 feet.

It also now allows someone who is in a car stopped by police or is being questioned to tape the encounter and limits the scope of the types of police actions that trigger the law to only those that are possibly dangerous.

Kavanagh said he made the changes to address constitutional issues. He said the new 8-foot limit was based on a U.S. Supreme Court decision in a case involving abortion protesters.

Democratic Minority Leader Reginald Bolding said that the measure is the wrong way to boost transparency and ease the perception in minority communities that they are not safe from police misconduct.

"One way to not do that is telling them that they cannot use their cellphones or do any type of recording unless it’s within a specific set of guidelines," Bolding said during a vote back in February.

Media groups including The Associated Press said the measure raises serious constitutional issues. They signed onto a letter from the National Press Photographers Association in opposition to the bill. Letting an officer decide on the spot what First Amendment-protected activity should be allowed would be problematic in many situations, the letter said.

Kavanagh’s bill makes a violation a petty offense, the lowest-level Arizona crime that can bring a fine but no jail time. Refusing to stop recording when an officer orders it would be a low-level misdemeanor subject to a 30-day jail sentence.