Assault cameras make another appearance

Two more police officers, this time in Seattle, learn the hard way that it is not a crime for citizens to take photos of cops performing their duties on a public street, while not interfering in any way.

The only problem is that the local taxpayers are out another $8,000 of their hard-earned bux, as that is the amount that the Seattle Police Department has agreed to pay the shutterbug, Bogdan Mohora.

"Two officers, James Pitts and David Toner, then ordered Mohora to hand over his camera, according to ACLU staff attorney Aaron Caplan, who handled the case. Mohora said that when he asked what he had done wrong, the officers handcuffed him and took his camera, wallet and satchel. They then drove him to a holding cell at the Seattle Police Department's West Precinct, Mohora said.
When he was released about an hour later, he said, he was told that he could be charged with disturbing the peace, provoking a riot or endangering a police officer.
Mohora was not charged and, in violation of department policy, police did not write up an incident report on the arrest, according to ACLU Legal Director Sarah Dunne." (emphasis mine)

There we go with the assault cameras again. If they're so dangerous, how come a report wasn't filed? Or, as seems more likely, were the two cops caught performing some "street justice" on a citizen that dared to document what they were doing that day (which apparently turned out to be making a perfectly good bust that they had every right to perform)?

Two two officers were both given written reprimands for their conduct in the incident.

Mr. Mohora sums things up nicely in the article:

'"It bothers me to think that police can abuse their authority by arresting innocent witnesses and then not even make standard police reports to document what happened.'"

You're not alone. It bothers me as well.