Alia Beard Rau

The Republic | azcentral.com

It could soon be illegal for the public to shoot close-up video of police officers, even on public property.

Sen. John Kavanagh, R-Fountain Hills, this week introduced Senate Bill 1054, which would make it a crime for someone within 20 feet of an officer to knowingly take video of any law enforcement activity without the officer's permission.

The bill also gives officers the ability to force someone to stop recording law enforcement activity on their own property if police determine it is interfering with their work or the area is unsafe.

The bill comes at a time of increased scrutiny of police shootings nationwide, from Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri to Eric Garner in New York. In November, the American Civil Liberties Union of Arizona launched Mobile Justice AZ, a free smartphone app that allows individuals to automatically send videos of law enforcement activity to the local ACLU if it appears someone's rights have been violated.

A Texas lawmaker unsuccessfully introduced similar legislation earlier this year.

Kavanagh said the proliferation of cellphones with video capability has created new concerns that must be addressed. He said his bill recognizes individuals' right to record law enforcement, but puts "reasonable restraints" on it.

"Certainly people have a right to do that under the First Amendment, if there is no interference," he said. "But people get very close with the cameras and even lose track of where they are standing. When they get too close, they distract the police officer ... and the individual taping may become hurt if the arrest becomes violent. It seems reasonable to create a safety buffer zone around these activities."

He said the 20-foot limit is still close enough for someone to record.

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First Amendment attorney Dan Barr called the bill an "unconstitutional solution to a nonexistent problem."

"You've had a whole slew of courts hold that people have a First Amendment right to take video of the police in public," he said. "If this bill ever became law, it would be struck down in a nanosecond."

Aside from that, he said he doesn't see the need for such legislation.

"State law already gives police the power to arrest people who interfere with them," Barr said. "So the question then becomes, what is the whole point of this bill? It makes as much sense as making it a crime to chew gum or comb your hair or suck a lollipop within 20 feet of an officer. They are not even logically connected."

Barr said interfering could be something like yelling at an officer while he or she is questioning someone, or physically getting in their way.

"Holding up a video camera is not interfering," he said. "It's irrational before you even get to the constitutional question."

Kavanagh said the current law deals with individuals who step between an officer and a suspect.

"This new technology has created this new problem, where it's a distraction that can be dangerous to the officer," he said. "The idea is to balance the right to videotape with the safety concerns of everybody."

The bill, which makes no exception for members of the news media, would make it a petty offense, which is typically punishable by a fine. If the individual refuses to stop recording, the officer could charge the individual with a misdemeanor.