Like a number of people without a ticket to the Nationals' game Sunday, Mark Butler stood outside the left field gate and watched some of the historic event from a distance. The Minnesota man carried a digital camera to capture the memories. For a member of the Uniformed Division of United States Secret Service, Butler captured too much.
9NEWS NOW photographer Greg Guise was rolling when an officer approached Mark Butler. Butler said the officer demanded he delete any pictures that showed the security checkpoints set up to screen fans for the visit by President George Bush.
"It's kind of like not being in America," Butler said. Butler said he was not interested in the security but in the part of the stadium you could see beyond the gate.
Secret Service spokesman Malcolm Wiley told 9NEWS NOW that there is no "hard and fast rule" in this situation. Wiley said it is a situation left to the discretion of the officer.
When specifically asked about the legality of ordering someone to delete pictures Wiley answered, "We have the authority to ask them to remove the picture from the camera."
Arthur Spitzer, Legal Director of the American Civil Liberties Union of the National Capital Area, said "ask" could be the operative word in that statement by Wiley. Spitzer said he knows of no law in these circumstances that would allow law enforcement to force someone to delete pictures.
Mr. Spitzer's absolutely correct. And the officer is right. They have the authority to ASK them to remove the picture, and Greg Guise had the authority to tell the Secret Service member to go fuck himself and cite the various Constitutional laws that he was breaking, including the First and the Fourth.
Besides, Greg could have deleted the picture, gone home, and gotten himself a copy of Ontrack and undeleted the photo and filed a lawsuit against the Secret Service.
Just because an officer asks you to do something, doesn't mean that they are in the right. You still have the right to tell them "no" if they are asking you to do something that's against your rights. That's what the courts are for.
There are lawsuits everyday against law enforcement agencies for overstepping their bounds. I'm not saying be a prick to the officer, he has enough to deal with on a regular basis, but you can say "I refuse to do what you say on the grounds that you are attempting to violate my Constitutional rights. If you continue to do so, I will be forced to contact my attorney."
It's polite, but firm and let's the officer know when he's overstepping his bounds. Then if the officer continues to do so, get the attorney ready to file a lawsuit.
Travis
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