Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012 | View Entire Issue (Oct. 27, 2000)
Police continued from page 1A tute intimidation and are vital tools for collecting evidence. “We aren’t going to just show up and monitor things,” he said. “When there is an event with a his tory of violence, we use [cameras] so we can capture evidence and not rely on eyewitness accounts.” Though Critical Mass doesn’t have a history of violence, Swenson said it has “a history of violations,” mainly traffic infractions. The event is videotaped in case protesters who receive citations appeal their fines in court, he said. “A picture is worth a thousand words,” he said. Lawfulness of taping in question But many people who are cap tured on film question the legality of police videotaping. “We’ve had many, many, many complaints about this,” said ASUO Legal Services attorney Ilona Koleszar. “We’re researching the propriety of it.” According to the state attorney general’s office, Oregon law doesn’t contain a provision specifically ad dressing police use of video cam eras. But a statute does exist that limits the police collection of infor mation about political, religious or social activists and organizations. Oregon Revised Statue 181.575 states that law enforcement agen cies can collect information about activists only if the “information di rectly relates to an investigation of criminal activities, and there are reasonable grounds to suspect the subject of the information is or may be involved in criminal conduct.” As long as police are filming in a public place and reasonably suspect that criminal activity is occurring or will occur, police have as much freedom to videotape as private citi zens have, said Pete Shephard, spe cial council to the Attorney General. EPD spokeswoman Jan Powers said the department acts in accor dance with this statute. “Any time a criminal act is likely to occur, we can shoot video,” she said. “We certainly can’t just tape everybody on the street.” But some activists say the EPD does exactly what it aren’t supposed to do —tape footage of parties and peaceful protests to identify troublemakers and activists in the community. “At any rally where the police show up, they always have their cameras trained on people,” Binder said. “Their use of training cameras on people has been absolutely op pressive.” Creating hostile environments Regardless of the legality of police videotaping, the use of cameras are worsening relations between police and the community, said University sophomore Elizabeth Boyarsky, who was videotaped at a party the EPD broke up on Oct. 15. “The video cameras are very intim idating,” she said. “Now, I don’t feel I could turn to a cop if I had a problem, and I’ve had a few theft problems and safety issues at my home.” Eugene-based author John Zerzan, an anarchist, said one of the reasons Eugene anarchists started wearing masks at protests is that they fear po lice videotaping and harassment. “Some people don’t want to be known to the cops,” he said. “If you’ve got a camera on you all the time, you don’t want to come [to protests].” But Swenson, who said the EPD began using cameras when they be came more lightweight and afford able, said that video cameras are so widespread that they couldn’t be as intimidating as some activists say they are. Furthermore, he said, ac tivists should appreciate the public record the videotapes make. A videotape that doesn’t contain evidence of a crime is erased, and a tape that is saved is discarded after the corresponding case is closed, Swenson said. Adam Weiner, a Portland attorney representing an activist who was pepper-sprayed in a protest on June 1,1997, said the EPD videos shot at the protest will be helpful in court. “From my perspective, it’s a good thing they videotaped, because what they taped I’ll be using as evi dence,” he said. But those activists who fear po lice harassment say the videotapes record protesters and not police. “Who’s watching the police?” Binder asked. Recently, activists have begun wielding video cameras themselves to record police. This was the intent of the local television programs Cop Watch and Cascadia Alive!. “We’ve begun fighting back to record their actions,” Binder said. Privacy continued from page 1A must decide if it constitutes an invi tation to the media to enter, said Mike Hiestand, attorney for the Stu dent Press Law Center. He said the May 24,1999, rulings by the U.S Supreme Court, Wilson vs. Layne and Hanlon vs. Berger, don’t necessarily ring true in Schliefer’s case. In Wilson vs. Layne, the court ruled that a media “ride-along” in a home violates the homeowner’s Fourth Amendment rights to priva cy. Though the officers had a war rant, the court said, the presence of the newspaper reporter and photog rapher accompanying them “was not in aid of the warrant’s execution.” A similar case, Hanlon vs. Berg er, contested that special agents from the United States Fish and Wildlife Service — who had a war rant to search structures on a private ranch owned by residents suspect ed of illegally hunting wildlife—did not have the right to allow media to film the incident on private property. A television crew from the Cable Ne\tfs Network (CNN) “accompa nied and observed the officers, and the media crew recorded the offi cers’ conduct in executing the war rant,” officers said before the Supreme Court. The court ruled the officers’ ac tions in this case violated the home owners’ Fourth Amendment rights on the same grounds as Wilson vs. Layne. “The fact is, both cases were dif ferent [from Schliefer’s] in that the media were invited along [in the Supreme Court cases] by law en forcement authorities,” Hiestand said. The sticking point in Schliefer’s case is whether or not the sign constituted an invitation for the media to enter the premises. Though Schliefer is not pushing for legal recourse, saying “what’s done is done,” he said even if the sign was an invitation for KVAL to enter through the back door, the tel evision news team did not enter through his back door — they came in the rear gate. He said the back door is located on the north side of the house by the carport, not the south gate where of ficers and KVAL originally entered. One Dozen Roses $15°° Delivered Call us! 344-9998 One dozen loses with greens, wrapped Delivered with your personal message Orders received by I :OOpm |*MM I/SK3 delivered the same day iJi&U 5t2! 13th & Kincaid Lane County Fairgrounds October 26 - 28 Thursday: Consign Equipment 9am-9pm * Friday: Consign Equipment 9am-5pm Sale 6pm - 9pm * Saturday: Sale 9am - 6pm Presented by: Willamette Pass; Willamette Backcountry & Santiam Pass Ski Patrols. Representative Vicki Walker Supports Continued Funding For Higher Education Vote No on 8,88,91 &93 WmaMWr Authorised and paid for by Vicki Walker for State Representative Vicki Walker, Proud STATE REPRESENTATIVE - DEMOCRAT 6 6 It's raining and we have 1,000's 0 6 6 A 015(1082 » hoots to keep your 6 6 fa | feet dry hi the puddles 4 ^ ^ regular price shoes U (with a minimum purchase of $30) P UITI3 <>veHoo+ Simple^ ,vjf AIRWALK deltas 957 Willamette • 687 www.Lazar’s.com remodeled, pip^room _ ... , / ,4 sn^rboards &^now»oard <&>tfc digital scales ' 100 nJ$/Roc B army camo hair color pipes — 100s skateboards — stickers — I 00c t-shirts <o wallets body jewelry posters — 1000s studded belts hair color Bob Ma« ley pipes — 100s skateboards — hot stickers — 1000s t-shirts wallets body jewelry posters — 1000s’ studded belts martial arts Grateful Dead backpacks martial arts Bob Marie backpacks blacklights- 57tfjt0jpfllY.887.fflfWS ; army camo nailfWl^t^zar'8.eom skateboards — hot: 'Over $10. Excluding skateboards, snowboards, scales and tobacco products. j-AZAfcrSBAZAK hts 57 w:mmm • 687 8139 ™ Little Caesars' Weekend Special! Saturday & Sunday
