Videotape the police

In 1991, Rodney King was pulled over after a high-speed chase with police. Unlike his passengers, King resisted his arrest. It took 56 blows of a baton before police decided he was adequately subdued.

It would have been no surprise if King's violent encounter went unnoticed. Most police brutality in the early ‘90s did. But unfortunately for those officers, George Holliday was watching the event with a video camera. His footage went viral and became one of the biggest civil rights issues of the decade.

Holliday is lucky he wasn't in Maryland. Anthony Graber was when he videotaped a plain-clothed officer brandishing a weapon during a traffic stop in July. He now faces up to 16 years in prison for posting it on YouTube.

Graber's case is far from secluded. In Oregon, police arrested a man who videotaped the arrest of his friend in a bowling alley. In Ohio, a woman was arrested for videotaping officers questioning her boyfriend. They pulled the safety card, alleging that her cell phone could have been a "cell-phone gun" – I couldn't make that up. An Illinois resident even faces felony charges for recording a police encounter.

While some states, including Illinois and Massachusetts, have relied on decades old wire-tapping laws to take these charges to court, most officers are relying on intimidation to stop videos. According to Christopher Calabrese of the American Civil Liberties Union, most of the time officers tell citizens that recording the encounter will land them in jail. Few people want to test that threat; I can't blame them. 63-year-old Peter Ballance was threatened by police to turn off his camera. He refused, as he should. He ended up in the hospital when an officer blindsided him with a tackle.

How is this just? How is this happening in the United States? Let me make this clear – I understand that most officers are good people who would put their lives on the line to save mine. I have the utmost respect and admiration for that. Those officers are the ones who should be most supportive of being videotaped. They have nothing to fear; most of the time video actually exonerates officers. But in the few instances where police are acting inappropriately, citizens need some way to fight back.

So what can we do? Videotape the police. Last year, I had an encounter with officers where I was warned against taking pictures in a public place. I was warned against exercising my First Amendment rights. I was told I was pissing an officer off when I wouldn't hand over a stack of fliers. I wish I had a camera. This year, I will.

We need to see this issue addressed on a national level. Photography is not a crime. In the day and age of the Patriot Act, a war on terrorism, and the degradation of our civil rights, we're told that things need to be done in the name of safety and homeland security. Americans have been detained for photographing not only police, but Transportation Security Administration agents and Amtrak stations. Even photography of the BP oil spill was prohibited in the name of "safety" concerns. "Safety" is a poor excuse for unlawful detainments.

A few legislators have tried to take some action. House Concurrent Resolution 298, introduced by Rep. Ed Towns, would prohibit the use of federal wiretapping to detain citizens with cameras. In the resolution, Towns cites a Department of Justice study in which 22 percent of officers claimed their colleagues used excessive force regularly. The resolution has been sitting in committee for over a month with no indication anything will be done with it.

The crux of this issue will be how we respond. Even if resolutions and laws are passed protecting our rights, it means nothing when the police tell you to put away your camera. Then, you'll be faced with a choice – cave to their demands or protect your rights. I hope you'll take the risk.