Brickbat: Public Servants

Addict / Dreamstime.com

Two Austin, Texas, police officers have been suspended for 20 and 10 days each for attempting to block an activist from video recording a traffic stop.

Comments

[Libertarian]

"Keep Austin Wired"

[Fuck you, Shikha (Nunya)]

Nice

[Fist of Etiquette]

"He was only on the streets for less than eight months after getting back from Afghanistan and being put on the streets? he's just not used to someone recording him in such a short vicinity."

He never knew when one of them was going to come at him with an improvised recording device.

[Libertarian]

So his *own lawyer* seems to be suggesting that this recent vet, 8 months after his return from overseas, may still not be comfortable with the laws and norms of governance and/or public policing. So let's give the guy a gun and a uniform!!!

[Brian]

He didn't shoot any old women in the head, interrogating their husbands for insurgent tunnels.

What else do you want?

[ColoradoKook]

Right! I interpreted that to mean he was unfit to do his job, so his suspension is actually very lenient.

Ignorance of the law is no excuse, I have been told.

[Scarecrow Repair & Chippering]

This is progress of a sort, even if it's only Austin.

[Longtobefree]

Well, I would definitely put a flashlight on something dark pointed at me until I could confirm it was not a weapon.
It will be fun to watch the courts define the line between "filming an interaction with the police" and "casing the joint", especially when the filming begins before the interaction. Last I read about some terrorist incidences, there was reconnaissance photography going on. Fun times.

[Juice]

I'm trying to find something not stupid about this particular take on the matter, but I'm coming up short.