A Texas lawmaker's proposal to establish a 25-foot "buffer zone" around police engaged in keeping the peace is drawing fire from both legal experts and law enforcement groups, but for different reasons.
Dallas-area House representative Jason Villalba introduced HB 2918, which would make it a misdemeanor to photograph police within 25 feet -- raising serious concerns that the bill, if passed, would violate the First Amendment and prevent individuals from holding police accountable. For Texans legally carrying a firearm, the buffer zone required would be 100 feet under Villalba's proposal.
Villalba reportedly said police approached him about creating the legislation, which would apply to everyone -- including journalists. Villalba has since said he'd revise the bill -- changing the buffer zone to 15 feet -- but legal experts as well as law enforcement groups say it is problematic.
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Bad idea -from the perspective of freedom at least.
ReplyDeletePicture this: someone is filming an abusive encounter involving police (from 25 feet away.) Seeing this, one officer approaches the citizen cameraperson and suddenly -they aren't 25 feet away anymore. Either the corrupt GESTAPO cop can keep backing them further and further away, or -if the person tries to maintain 25 feet from the approaching officer- the badged thug can claim they were attempting to "flee".
Bad bad bad idea. To use their own parlance; if citizens have no "reasonable expectation of privacy" then it is doubly so for the GESTAPO.
Good points. Thanks.
DeleteThis makes as much sense as cops beating someone with sticks and zapping them with tasers and shouting, "Stop Resisting! Stop Resisting!", while the person is curled up in a fetal position to avoid the abuse/torture.
ReplyDelete"It's because we-uns is up he-ah, and you-uns is down they-ah."
:)
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