our law enforcement officers need help with the law
us marshal nehemiah flowers can’t think of alternatives to the illegal siezure and destruction of media recordings documenting a speech by us supreme court justice scalia.
“The justice informed us he did not want any recordings of his speech and remarks and when we discovered that one, or possibly two, reporters were in fact recording, she took action,” Flowers told The Associated Press.
“Even with hindsight, I can’t think of what other steps she could have done,” Flowers said.
how ’bout these other steps?
1) confiscate the recording devices after the event and issue an injuction to prevent the use or reproduction of the recordings until the issue is resolved.
2) maintain the integrity of the recording as evidence.
3) allow a court to decide if the recordings should be destroyed.
just a thought… i dunno.
do we really need to help our law enforcement officials figure out this whole “due process” thing? we don’t even have to get into strange laws (like the privacy protection act – mentioned in the ap story), we can just stick to the simple ones:
us constitution, amendment 4The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.
us constitution, amendment 5No person shall be held to answer for a capital, or otherwise infamous crime, unless on a presentment or indictment of a Grand Jury, except in cases arising in the land or naval forces, or in the Militia, when in actual service in time of War or public danger; nor shall any person be subject for the same offence to be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb; nor shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself, nor be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation.