ACLU Presses Photo-Blocking Case Against Philadelphia Cops
By Pat Loeb
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- The American Civil Liberties Union has filed its fifth lawsuit against the Philadelphia police department related to police interfering with civilians trying to photograph arrests.
This case goes back to a 2012 demonstration at the Pennsylvania Convention Center.
----
The lawsuit says that Amanda Geraci was filming the arrest of a protester at an anti-fracking demonstration when Civil Affairs officer Dawn Brown pushed her against a column and held her by the neck to restrain her.
"This pretty much shocked Ms. Geraci, particularly because Civil Affairs officers interact with protestors all the time and they are supposed to be particularly sensitive to the First Amendment," says ACLU attorney Molly Tack-Hooper.
She says Geraci is filing the lawsuit after her complaint to the police department's Internal Affairs unit resulted in exoneration for Officer Brown.
The police department declined comment, but noted that two months after the incident, police commissioner Charles Ramsey formally directed officers not to interfere with citizens taking video of arrests. Tack-Hooper says that's not sufficient.
"The police have a duty to adequately train their officers, not just waft paper at them," she said.
None of the other cases has yet been decided.