One of the most memorable videos involving police was the infamous Rodney King beating. It was caught on tape by a casual observer and showed the world the extent to which some officers of the law overstepped boundaries. It was one of the first times such a flagrant human rights violation had been caught on video.
Today, the person who made that video would likely be arrested and prosecuted. Yes, prosecuted for videotaping public servants who wear badges and carry guns. In Maryland, state police are using state wiretap laws to prosecute a motorcyclist who posted a video of an Maryland State trooper making a traffic stop with his gun drawn.
On March 5, 2010, Anthony Graber was riding his motorcycle when he was confronted by a plainclothes Maryland State trooper as he came to a stop at an exit. Graber, who had a video camera mounted on his helmet, recorded the event in which he was given a ticket for speeding. A few days later, he posted the encounter on YouTube. According to a press release fromy the American Civil Liberties Union of Maryland, the trooper obtained an arrest warrant charging Graber with a violation of the state wiretap law. State police seized his computers and video camera. Graber, who is married and the father of two children, is also a staff sergeant in the Maryland Air National Guard, and a computer systems engineer. If convicted, he faces up to 16 years in prison. 
Carlos Miller, a journalist who runs the blog “Photography Is Not a Crime,” has been arrested twice for the same offense and has followed similar arrests over the past few years. This past July, South Florida model Tasha Ford was arrested on felony wiretapping charges after she videotaped cops arresting her son. In Oregon, Hao Vang was arrested two years ago for videoing police beating his friend. Even after a $19,000 settlement, Beaverton Police Chief Geoff Spalding says that his department will continue to make these types of arrests.
Is this the new world order? It strikes me as odd that wire tap laws would be used in such a manner given that police themselves have cameras mounted on their dashboards in their vehicles that do the same thing. These practices, if allowed to continue, are an abuse of power, a form of intimidation and a violation of one’s First Amendment rights. – torrance stephens, ph.d.
photo captions:
above: Teen struggling with Seattle Police Officer (June 2010)
below: Rodney King beating (March 1991)
