Lawsuit filed over Arizona law that bans filming within 8 feet of law enforcement
The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and some media organizations filed a lawsuit over an Arizona law that would bar recording video of law enforcement within eight feet.
The law was signed in July by Arizona Governor Doug Ducey, a Republican, and makes it a crime to record law enforcement activity within that distance. Violators would face a potential misdemeanor charge after being warned once to move away.
The lawsuit seeks an injunction ahead of the law's September effect date. It was filed in the US District Court for the district Of Arizona.
In recent years, the act of filming law enforcement officials has become a way of exposing misconduct.
The most high-profile example of such filming is cellphone video footage taken by bystanders of the arrest and murder of George Floyd, a Black man, who died after his neck was pinned to the ground by a police official for nine minutes in May 2020. Floyd's death sparked demonstrations against racism and police brutality in the United States and across the world.
The lawsuit argues that the Arizona law violates the US Constitution's First Amendment right to record and would negatively impact a reporter's ability to work on stories related to law enforcement due to the risk of arrest and prosecution.
Among the ten news media groups that joined the lawsuit were local news stations and media broadcasting companies, including NBC Universal Media, the parent company of NBC News.
The New York University's First Amendment Watch says that over 60% of the US population lives in states in which federal appeals courts have recognized the First Amendment right to record police officers performing their duties in public.
(Source:Reuters)
Ben & Jerry’s sues parent company Unilever over Gaza advocacy muzzle
Indifference toward Gaza genocide in US rooted in anti-Arab, anti-Muslim hate: Activist
US anti-war movement slams crackdown on pro-Palestine dissent
Iraq resistance strikes Israeli military targets deep inside occupied territories
VIDEO | Iranian craftsmanship on display at 37th National Handicrafts Expo
VIDEO | Kashmir remembers Hazrat Fatima Zehra as a symbol of resistance.
VIDEO | Iran’s defense minister wraps up strategic visit to Damascus
VIDEO | Australia slightly alters arms exports to Israel amid waves of protests
Resistance movements condemn Israeli killing of Hezbollah spokesman
Biden allows Ukraine to use US missiles to strike inside Russia: Sources
OIC condemns Israel’s war crimes against Palestinians in Gaza
PressTV NEWSLETTER
now
This makes it easy to access the Press TV website
