MN Judge Refuses To Throw Out Case Against Citizen Recording Police, EMS
from the one-step-forward,-two-steps-back dept
Back in January, I wrote about an exceptionally odd case in Minnesota in which a private citizen had his recording device liberated from his person by police after he recorded them patting down a bloodied man before putting him in an ambulance. What made it odd wasn’t what the police did initially, as that happens far too often these days, but in that Andrew Henderson was then charged with disorderly conduct and obstruction, with the paperwork describing what he’d done as a HIPAA violation. In case your common-sense-o-meter isn’t functioning today, that claim is bullshit, since HIPAA covers actions by healthcare providers in how they deal with patient information. In addition, the claim is at odds with another recording Henderson made of the officer that took his property, in which deputy Jacqueline Muellner claimed she was taking the device in as “evidence.” This “evidence” was subsequently deleted before Henderson’s recording device was given back to him, leading me to wonder when the case against Henderson would be tossed out to make room for one against deputy Muellner.The answer, unfortunately, might be never. Ramsey County Judge Edward Wilson has denied Henderson’s attempt to get the case thrown out, saying that the first amendment doesn’t apply. He also refused to throw out the obstruction charge, despite the fact that the bench Henderson had been sitting on is roughly thirty feet from where the ambulance was parked.
Wilson, the judge, wrote in his order that "it is not necessary that one engage in a physical act to interfere or obstruct. It is sufficient if the defendant's actions or conduct had the effect of physically obstructing or interfering with a member of an ambulance crew."Got it now? Obstruction doesn’t actually mean obstruction, it means either obstruction or doing something that makes professional police and EMS folk not able to do their jobs properly. This, apparently, includes recording them from thirty feet away, which puts into question exactly how many Minnesota police and EMS workers suffer from the kind of ADD my dog has when I take her on walks. I can imagine it now: EMS worker kneels in front of patient, EMS worker begins wiping away blood on patient’s face, EMS worker asks patient if he remembers his name, EMS worker cannot hear response because he’s run into heavy traffic chasing a squirrel.
And, while the disorderly conduct charge absolutely reeks of the police throwing feces at the wall to see what sticks, deputy Muellner ran away and retired to become former-deputy Muellner, with all of her benefits in place and without any formal inquiry into why she destroyed evidence so important that it was worth seizing private property.
However, while the news is all bad thus far, Henderson’s lawyers are promising to take this to trial, so we’ll just have to see if the judicial process has a bit more sense than judicial officers of the court.
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Filed Under: andrew henderson, destruction of evidence, minnesota, recording police, recordings
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A year ago, I would've been surprised at this casual re-writing of the dictionary. Today, I don't bat an eye.
This case actually makes a good argument for Google Glass. If Henderson actually was sitting 30 feet away, been wearing a Google Glass, but didn't get up, just started recording, no way in hell anyone could spot the glass from 30 feet away. If the ambulance crew/police still say "obstruction" in that case, then they have no business performing any type of action out in public, and are thus, unfit for their jobs. They're supposed to be trained to act under pressure, but apparently, being seen and/or recorded by a member of the public while out in public is too much pressure to expect them to handle.
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Sorry, I must have missed the part where he not only got up from the bench, but went over and physically interfered with the ambulance personnel, because last time I checked unless you're the size of a molecule or atom, having your picture taken or otherwise being recorded does not physically affect you in the least.
Also, along with what Rikuo said, any paramedic who is unable to do their job due the 'horrible interference' of being recorded/watched does not in any way, shape or form deserve to hold their job, as it implies that they can be distracted by even the most minute things, which could very well cost people their lives.
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Civil Lawsuit Damages
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So then EMS workers can be said to have the same level of concentration as Gir?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b_OME1h5Ek4
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Unfortunately, the settlement will be paid out of taxpayer funds, not the salaries of the cops and judges who are actually responsible for the incompetent chain of events.
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thin blue line of testiliars strikes again ! ! !
listen up, the -what?- 1%? 10%? 90%? of donut eaters who are (relatively) clean: as long as YOU condone, cover up, and cooperate with all your fellow pigs who do this shit, YOU ARE ALL GUILTY...
that is how we are played, that is the rules you should be liable for also...
bad kops, no donuts!
art guerrilla
aka ann archy
eof
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Shoot the dog and get him lock up?
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For those of us who are not used to measurement units used in a single country
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Photons man, photons
/snark off
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We can all agree that observation *can* change the behavior of those observed; this is why the NSA scandal is as much a 1st Amendment violation as a 4th. Techdirt has argued this line of reasoning before, and has (IMHO) done so correctly.
As has been pointed out by the Fraternal Order of Police several times, recording police *does* make them change their approach when enforcing the law. (Some, including myself, would also point out that this is precisely the purpose of making such recordings, but I digress).
If the judge interprets the statute for obstruction of justice to mean anything which might change police or first responders' behavior, then he has a point.
The statute(609.50) is a little vague here - and allows obstruction to be defined as anything which 'interferes' with police activity. If a broad definition of 'interferes'is used, his argument makes some sense.
Of course, in the light of ACLU v. Alvarez, I'm not sure how he can reasonably use such a broad definition. An Appellate court almost certainly won't stand by it.
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Guy being sued says there was video evidence, but it was stolen and deleted.
Police claim that no such evidence ever existed.
Since the police are automatically considered more reliable/trustworthy due to their job, the 'I had evidence but it was taken from me' not only doesn't work in the favor of the victim, it is held against him, because the judge assumes he's lying to discredit the 'upstanding' police officers.
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"Shameless" ... to be without shame ... means not feeling shame you should feel
More or less. ;-)
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I am hoping to be in the courtroom if and when the trial takes place.
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Let's all hope that Mr Henderson is found not guilty and those worthless city attorneys are sent packing...
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this case.
Apparently, no verdict was reached yesterday.
http://www.twincities.com/crime/ci_25232676/little-canada-man-who-videotaped-deputy-and-me dics
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The city prosecutor lied and claimed that Mr Henderson
was only three feet away when filming the para-medics.
Pound sand, Mr Beck and fight some real crime.
I now hope that Mr Henderson will now sue the City of Little Canada.
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