Metro Jacksonville

This has been going on for some time now, actually since WWII, but 9/11 has put it into overdrive and threatens our civil rights and freedoms. Certainly it WAS warranted under total war conditions, but today? In trying to collect a photo of a MARTA bus, I rediscovered "The Heat!"

Never had this problem at the Jacksonville Amtrak station, but I have heard and read horror stories that allegedly took place there. I make it a point to go straight to the station masters office if I want to take a photo on Amtrak property. Otherwise STAY ON PUBLIC RIGHT-OF-WAY and you should be able to photograph anything you damn well please... BUT if you read on, you'll see that a land with such freedoms may be in our past.

QuoteIn Miami two photojournalists were told by private security for the transit system and Miami-Dade police officers that they were not allowed to photograph in and around the metro stop. Police also barred the pair from entering the station although they had metro tickets and threatened them with arrest if they did not comply. Another similar incident occurred in Atlanta where a person was ordered off a train and off MARTA property by a transit employee for taking pictures. Almost as disturbing was a subsequent post by a MARTA customer service representative who justified the action as a result of “the 9/11 attack and the subway bombings in Spain and the UK.”

Illinois, Maryland and Massachusetts are just three states where police are using obscure wiretap laws to prosecute people for recording the activities of police officers on public streets and roadways. In Boston one man was arrested for “illegal electronic surveillance” after he recorded audio of police officers making a drug arrest. In Baltimore, several people face felony charges for recording their own arrests. All of these incidents happened in public.


There were numerous reports of government interference with press coverage of the Deepwater Horizon disaster in the Gulf of Mexico. A CBS camera was ordered away from a beach in South Pass, Louisiana by a boat of BP contractors with two Coast Guard officers on board. The crew was threatened with arrest by the Coast Guard, who said that they were just enforcing “BP’s rules.” A freelance photographer shooting for ProPublica was detained by Texas City, Texas police after taking photos of a BP refinery on the grounds that taking photographs that included the refinery “could threaten national security.” He was followed by a BP employee in a truck and then blocked by two police cars when he pulled into a gas station, where police asked to review his digital photographs and took down his personal information after demanding identification. In early July the Coast Guard issued a policy setting up a 65-foot “safety zone” around booms deployed along the gulf coast, restricting news coverage of the story. There have also been reports that the media have been told that they were not allowed to speak with any BP workers or contractors involved in the clean-up efforts.

While these incidents only create anecdotal evidence, they do seem to point to a shift in how free speech is viewed by both law enforcement and the public. In many cases police officers make up new laws. In other incidents the police and the public seem to truly believe that they are enforcing or articulating laws or unwritten policies that do not actually exist. Still other cases appear to be an abuse of discretion as authorities ignore well founded constitutional principles. It is therefore incumbent upon the legal community to directly address these cases as soon as possible.

In both the Atlanta and Miami incidents letters were sent to the appropriate authorities pointing out that their respective municipal rules and regulations did not prohibit non-commercial photography. While expressing an appreciation for safety concerns it is also important to point out that photography/videography by itself is not a dangerous or pernicious activity unless accompanied by other behavior giving rise to probable cause or reasonable suspicion that would merit further investigation. Equating photography with terrorism creates an atmosphere of initial distrust and unnecessary suspicion. Public photography/videography is a protected First Amendment right of free expression limited only by reasonable time, place and manner restrictions.

Additionally, it should pointed out that any limitation on permitted photography should be governed by the amount of disruption such activity causes, such as blocking access to walkways for extended periods of time or interference with operations or personnel. It should not be based upon a dislike of these activities by individuals or officers. It should also be recognized that when a person has finished taking photos/videos in a reasonable manner, without having done anything else, stopping that person for questioning may cause more of a disruption than the activity itself.

SOURCE:   http://nppa.org/news_and_events/news/2010/07/restrictions.html

   

QuoteJim P Photography:

This time their victim was the editor of ""RAILFAN & RAILROAD" magazine who was in New York City to take pictures of the Transit Museum's vintage train on August 21 2010. According to a preliminary copy of the editorial that is going to be published in"RAILFAN & RAILROAD magazine that is now making its way around the railroad forums:

   On August 21, 2010, your editor, along with contributor Mike Burkhart, went into New York City to photograph the Transit Museum’s historic train, which was making a run to the Rockaways. After shooting for most of the day, we were waiting for the return trip at the Broad Channel station when we were approached by two (and eventually, five) officers of the New York Police Department. They insisted that photography was not allowed. After asking for i.d., I gave a verbal legal i.d. (full name and hometown) and repeatedly asked for a supervisor. I soon found myself in handcuffs. Mike and I were eventually cited, with the Transit Adjudication Bureau violation reading “. . . P.O. observed deft using his camera to take unauthorized photos on south bound plat.” This apparently violated Section/Subdivision 1050.9.C of the New York City Rules of Conduct. By the way, the section cited states that “Photography, filming or video recording in any facility or conveyance is permitted except that ancillary equipment such as lights, reflectors or tripods may not be used.”

SOURCE:  http://www.flickr.com/groups/photography_is_not_a_crime/discuss/72157625611098830/

QuoteTuesday, February 10, 2009
Updated: January 12th, 2011 10:23 AM CDT

Steven Colbert 'Nails' Amtrak on Air Over Photographer Arrest

Feb. 3, 2009 (Gothamist delivered by Newstex) -- Tackling an issue near and dear to photographers' hearts, Steven Colbert ran a segment (click here for video) last night about photographers getting "nailed" for the (non)crime of taking pictures in train stations. He follows the story of a deeply scary, cat-walking photographer who was arrested after shooting some "shiny" trains in New York's Penn Station. For his terrorist plot? No, for the Amtrak photography contest, of course. We're quite familiar with the story here in D.C., having covered in depth the confusion over which photography rules can be enforced and how at Union Station. We saw Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton hold a Congressional hearing on the unconstitutionality of those rules, and continued to watch as, unsurprisingly, nothing was done about it. Fox 5 got the irony award for getting hassled while reporting on illegal Hassling. For their part, Amtrak has somewhat toothlessly responded to stories like Duane Kerzic's arrest by promising to develop "new photography guidelines that will be posted on the carrier's Web site" and that "existing Amtrak police department guidelines are being reviewed and updated." Photography right's advocates should get a good chuckle over Colbert's piece. Maybe we should invite him to speak before Congress next time? Assuming congress members would, you know, get the joke.

http://www.imaginginfo.com/web/online/News/Steven-Colbert-Nails-Amtrak-on-Air-Over-Photographer-Arrest/3$4757

OCKLAWAHA

Good to know MARTA and Springfield Tranvestite hookers are protected from being photgraped in public spaces.