If a Texas state representative gets his way, filming a cop too close would land violators with 180 days of jail-time and a $2,000 fine.
State Representative Jason Villalba, a Republican from Dallas, has filed a bill that grants cops a 25-foot “halo” inside which they cannot be filmed. If the cameraman has a firearm, that “halo” expands to 100 feet. Anyone who breaks the 100-feet law could get sent to jail for an entire year, and fined $4,000.
Journalists would get an exception—if they’re licensed by the FCC. That means online publications (like this one) would not get special treatment.
“I thought that was reasonable, 25 feet,” Villalba told the Dallas Observer. “I measured that out in my office. It didn’t seem to be terribly disruptive. I’m not trying to limit the ability to film. I don’t have any problems with that.”
Villalba, who says he has many friends and family members in the police force, claims the law is necessary because “a lot of times these situations are in the heat of a law enforcement officer doing their jobs.”
“We’re just trying to create enough separation, enough space so that officer feels comfortable,” he said.
The bill, should it move forward, is of dubious constitutionality—federal courts have ruled in the past that filming cops falls under the first amendment.
“Texans have a First Amendment right to record police officers in public places as they perform their duties,” the ACLU wrote in a statement. “Many high-profile incidents of police abuse, like LAPD officers’ beating of Rodney King, would never have been exposed to public scrutiny but for the citizen journalists on the scene who dared to record conduct that they believed was wrong.”
Meanwhile, the Facebook page “Recall Jason Villalba” has over 4,000 likes.
