(MintPress) — The end of August in Los Angeles, Calif. was met not only with a farewell to the brightest of summer months, but an introduction to a new police policy that includes photography and videotaping among suspicious activities related to possible terrorism.

In a move the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) claims would help its ability to combat terrorism within the city, citing threats ranging from Iran to animal rights activists, it can now arrest photojournalists and activists for suspicious activity if the subject of such documentation is not to the liking of law enforcement — a move that could potentially lead to the violation of First Amendment rights to freedom of the press.

In a letter of request to the Board of Police Commissioners regarding the changes, LAPD Chief of Police Charlie Beck argued that LAPD policies must be in line with national intelligence agencies, for the purpose of sharing information related to terrorism.

“The order revises the procedures for the reporting of suspicious activity potentially related to foreign or domestic terrorism to be consistent with the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, Information Sharing Environment Functional Standards Suspicious Activity Reporting,” Beck stated in a letter.

Along with the request, Beck attached a list of categories that could be included under the suspicious activity umbrella. Among them was photography, defined using the following description: “Taking pictures or videos of facilities/buildings, infrastructures or protected sites in a manner that would arouse suspicion in a reasonable person.”

The category went on to give examples such as taking photos of personnel carrying out security, including badges and and security equipment.

The New York Police Department (NYPD) has become notorious for its own counter-terrorism initiatives and controversial surveillance practices. While long heralded as the nation’s most invasive law enforcement department, it seems the LAPD is catching up, expanding its coverage of local law enforcement initiatives into the realm of national security, domestic terrorism operations.

Justification?

“In this region we have active terrorist plots, in this region, right now.”

That was a statement made by Deputy Chief and Commanding Officer of Counter-Terrorism, Michael Downing, to a Los Angeles radio station.

The statement was used as a justification for additions to the definition of what suspicious activities constitute possible charges relating to terrorism. In addition to naming “government of Iran operatives” and Hezbollah, Downing also referred to threats from homegrown violent extremists and animal rights groups.

At this point, it’s not clear if the LAPD has arrested anyone for taking photos, on the premise of suspicious activity. Inquiries made by MintPress with the LAPD media relations department regarding the topic were not immediately returned. What is known is that it’s a practice carried out by the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department, and it has been for quite some time.

What’s changing?

This isn’t the first time the L.A. law enforcement is under fire for questionable justification for arrests. A lawsuit in U.S. District court is challenging the detention of National Press Association photographers who claim their treatment by the L.A. Sheriff’s Department went beyond the framework of the law.

In October, a number of photojournalists filed the lawsuit, stemming from six different incidents in which three photographers were searched and detained by deputies with the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, according to reports from the LA Times.

Following the arrests, the journalists filed a lawsuit against the Sheriff’s Department, claiming they were improperly arrested for shooting legally in public places, violating their First Amendment freedom of expression and Fourth Amendment protection against unlawful search and seizure.

Among the professional journalists was Shawn Nee, who caught his 2009 incident with the LA Sheriff’s deputy on tape. On the video, Deputy Richard Gylfie approached Nee and tells him to stop taking photos in the L.A. subway. When Nee asked if the action is illegal, Gylfie says it’s not, although claims it’s against the rules of the metro system — a claim that turned out to be false.

“… Photography is allowed in the Metro Rail system as long as it is ‘not for commercial purpose,’ and ‘no permit is required if the photographic equipment is hand held, no tripods or flash are used, and the images are not taken inside moving trains,’” according to the Courthouse News Service.

Gylfie then goes on to question whether Nee is working with al-Qaida on a plot to blow up the Subway system.

“I want to know who you are and why you’re taking pictures of the Subway system,” he says on tape. “Al-Qaida would love to buy your pictures, so I want to know if you are in cahoots with al-Qaida to sell these pictures to them for terrorist purposes. That’s a crime.”

Nee is eventually arrested, although Gylfie admits he has not broken the law. Instead, Gylfie said he is arrested on suspicion that he could be breaking the law, a claim that rests upon his accusation that the photos taken by Gylfie could be used in a terrorist plot.

In 2011, when the case was filed, American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Southern California’s Peter Bibring, told the LA Times that photojournalists were arrested, despite the clear constitutional violations.

“Photography is not a crime,” Bibring told the LA Times. “It’s protected First Amendment expression. To single them out for such treatment while they’re pursuing a constitutionally protected activity is doubly wrong.”

Long Beach Post reporter Greggory Moore and freelance photographer Shane Quentin are also serving as the complainants in the lawsuit.

It’s official

The reporting of suspicious activity has emerged among law enforcements rings throughout the nation as a method of preventing terrorist attacks. The definition of what constitutes such activity is vague, with room for interpretation and, civil rights advocates argue, could lead to the constitutional violations of everyday Americans if gone unchecked.

According to the Courthouse News Service, law enforcement departments throughout the nation have similar policies which include photography on the list of those activities that could warrant arrest.

The move by the LAPD could be seen as a response to the L.A. Sheriff’s Department’s current debacle in U.S. District Court. While nothing may change for the LAPD and its justifications for arrest, there’s not a tangible policy to point to when challenged. And for that, photographers attempting to photograph and videotape police officers — or anyone else — in action are concerned, citing the potential to erode the freedoms the country was founded on.