Baltimore Transit Officials Won't Release Footage Of Freddie Gray Protests Because Everything Is Always About 'Terrorism'

from the an-excuse-with-a-universal-adapter dept

Tue, Jun 21st 2016 3:25am — Tim Cushing

The excuse that worked so well for so long -- "because terrorism" -- seems to have lost its luster. Despite having a locked iPhone tied to a mass shooting with terrorist overtones, the FBI was unable to budge the needle on encryption backdoors or magical "lawful access" crypto keys.

However, that doesn't mean any number of government entities aren't willing to use the ever present "threat" of terrorism as fuel for their various civil liberties-endangering bonfires. Or that they won't use it as a profoundly cheap excuse to withhold information from the American public -- like the Indiana State Police's refusal to turn over Stingray docs because doing so might allow terrorists to plan attacks on cherished annual state events like the Mule Day Parade.

The Maryland Transit Authority has been ducking a Public Information Act (PIA) request from the Baltimore Sun for nearly a year at this point. The paper asked for surveillance footage from the Mondawin Metro station, captured in April of last year as police shut down mass transit in anticipation of protests following the death of Freddie Gray in the back of Baltimore PD van.

The MTA's first refusal utilized another very popular law enforcement excuse.

In denying the Sun's first PIA request last year, the MTA said that the office of Baltimore State's Attorney Marilyn Mosby had asked it not to release the footage because it was still being used in criminal investigations.

The Sun took this in stride and issued another request almost a year later.

The Sun sent the MTA another PIA request for the footage last month, noting that there is a statute of limitations of one year for misdemeanor charges, and that it had been a year since the incident in question — limiting the number of pending investigations there could be.

If some footage remained relevant to open investigations, The Sun said, that footage could be redacted and the rest made available.

The MTA's bluff had been called but it still had no interest in turning over the requested footage. So, it reached for the bluff that can never be called -- because it is existential, wholly subjective, and without an expiration date.

When the MTA responded last week, it made no mention of pending investigations in the state's attorney's office. It said instead that the footage could not be released because of Homeland Security concerns.

If you thought that was the end of the stupidity, you're mistaken. The Sun asked for clarification -- did this mean the MTA would never release footage from its security cameras? The MTA clarified with a bullshit-laden buck pass:

The MTA responded Friday, explaining that The Sun would have to ask the federal Transportation Security Administration for written permission to review any of the footage from the cameras, because they were funded through Homeland Security grants.

The MTA controls the cameras. It acquired them with grant money, but they are still the sole property of the MTA. The TSA is a completely unconnected third party. The DHS hands out grant money, not the TSA. And even if the TSA was somehow connected because of the grant, the footage requested only involved local law enforcement.

But it gets even worse. Even if the Sun were able to talk the TSA into granting permission (that really isn't its to grant) for the release of the requested footage, the MTA would still refuse to hand it over.

[I]f The Sun were to get that permission, it said, the MTA still would deny the footage based on its belief that the footage "would reveal the facility's safety and support systems, surveillance techniques, and security systems and technologies," as well as "jeopardize the security of the facility; facilitate the planning of a terrorist attack; and endanger the life or physical safety of the public."

This is the problem with public records laws. The government still maintains far too much control. Officials may occasionally talk big about "presumption of transparency," but when push comes to shove, its agencies like these doing all the pushing and shoving -- and routinely delivering the government equivalent of the playground rebuttal: "Make me."

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Filed Under: baltimore, foia, freddie gray, protests, terrorism, transit, tsa

15 Comments

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Anonymous Coward, 21 Jun 2016 @ 4:46am

There's a reason for this
The transit center is a major hub for students -- due to the lack of school transportation. On the day in question, Baltimore Police -- putatively acting on social media claims of a "purge", claims which the DoJ subsequently found baseless -- shut it down. They thus cut off large numbers of students from their only way home...and then cordoned off the streets and ordered them to go home. In other words, police deliberately provoked a confrontation where none would have existed.

THAT is what's being hidden. It doesn't fit the narrative of a city exploding in unprovoked rioting. Never mind that the city was actually peaceful that day -- sad and angry, but peaceful. I know. I was there.
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Anonymous Coward, 21 Jun 2016 @ 5:32am

The Moment
The moment the US government said they needed to do something about Terrorism I turned to family and friends and said... this will be used against us.

No one believed me, everyone left and right in the political spectrum, supported Bush or said we needed to do something. Bush is a tyrant greater than almost every president from the past other than Woodrow Wilson. We will be feeling the tyrannical affects of Bush for the rest of our lives.

And now you can see every Police force not only ready but EAGER to use terrorism to fuck with the general citizenry as they deem fit.
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Joe Random, 21 Jun 2016 @ 6:26am

Time for a lawsuit
A lawsuit over this would surely attract the donations and cooperation of many.
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Howard J. Finkle, 21 Jun 2016 @ 6:53am

You don't always get the government you want...
...but sometimes the government you deserve. And we all deserve this for tolerating the misuse and overuse of the word "terrorism." I grow tired of this bullshit culture of acceptance/don't criticize anything.
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blogagog (profile), 21 Jun 2016 @ 7:09am

I agree with them
We should not spread information that can be helpful to terrorists. That's why I'm not reporting my income to the IRS anymore. I'm not sure how, but it could be useful to terrorists.
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Anonymous Coward, 21 Jun 2016 @ 7:52am

terrorism (ter ur iz um), n, to use threats of violence to achieve political goals

So, using threats of terrorism to further political goals is ?
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Khannea Sun Tzu, 21 Jun 2016 @ 10:12am

Annoying
Why doesn't anyone in the US stand up and do something? Like, for real?
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Uriel-238 (profile), 21 Jun 2016 @ 12:38pm

Re: There's a reason for this
This reminds me of the Sproul Plaza protest in Berkeley, 1969-05-20. National guard surrounded / cornered the protesters with bayonetted rifles while helecopters dropped massive amounts of tear gas on them. Because that's how California deals with unruly youngsters when under the gubernatorship of Ronald Reagan.
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John (profile), 21 Jun 2016 @ 1:36pm

FBI, CIA, DOD, DOJ, TLAs
If and when the government mandates that regular normal peaceful citizens must use a broken encryption system. Put some teeth in the repair and refurbishment of such a law. Because this mandate will require encryption software to be broken. When it's revealed that in fact it's broken in such and such a way that makes it available for ANYBODY to hack. The manufacturer will make any and all changes to said software and release it to all those who purchased it originally with the Gov. footing the remanufacture and distribution process entirely because the Gov. listened to politicians instead of security professionals who told them "Don't do it!" over and over and over and over.....
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Anonymous Coward, 21 Jun 2016 @ 1:39pm

Re: Re: There's a reason for this
Yet another reason that I hoped Reagan suffered every single day and that right now he is screaming in agony while burning in hell. What a vile, evil, disgusting sociopathic excuse for a human being -- he deserves no mercy and no pity.
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Anonymous Coward, 21 Jun 2016 @ 1:42pm

so protesting the murder of unarmed citizens at the hands of criminal police is considered terrorism.

That's lovely.
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Anonymous Coward, 21 Jun 2016 @ 1:44pm

Re: The Moment
You have my sympathies I tried to get my relatives to move out of the US years ago when I saw this happening.

suffice to say they think I am nuts and cut off all contact years ago.
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Anonymous Coward, 22 Jun 2016 @ 12:36am

Re: FBI, CIA, DOD, DOJ, TLAs
The government does not pay any bills, its taxpayer do. So when presented with a bill, it either raises taxes, or cuts down on the things it does for its citizens, so saying the government should pay is saying its citizens should pay.
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Wendy Cockcroft, 22 Jun 2016 @ 5:42am

Re: Re: There's a reason for this
I had no idea that was under Reagan's watch. Dear me!
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Wendy Cockcroft, 22 Jun 2016 @ 5:46am

Re:
Anything that goes against the official Establishment line is terrorism.

Opposed to being poisoned by Fracking practices? You terrorist!

Dislike your government's foreign policy? You terrorist!

Resentful of the growing income gap between yourself and the 1%? What do you mean, you don't buy trickle-down theory any more, you terrorist?

Basically, anyone left of froth-mouthed reactionary right-wing nutbucketry is deemed a terrorist unless you take up arms against the government or its employees... in which case they'll write you off as a lone wolf nut... if you're white.
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