Colin McEnroe Show: The Problem Of Policing Downtown New Haven
Operation Nightlife is raising many policy questions in downtown New Haven
Published: Oct 11, 2010
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Colin McEnroe Show: The Problem Of Policing Downtown New Haven
New Haven, which ordinarily boasts an enviable mix of nightlife and culture, overseen by a benevolent city government -- has been though a nightmarish stretch in which rowdy behavior in the club district segued into a night when gun fire was exchanged between cops and clubgoers. That in turn led to a nightclub crackdown. Police in SWAT gear have stormed into clubs and there have been charges of unwarranted beatings, kicking and tasing by police. Murky fragments of these incidents have been captured by clubgoers with phone video cameras. In some cases, the footage includes the cops objecting and shutting down the cameras.
The chain of events have put the police on a collision course with a population of college students thoroughly familiar with its rights under the law and somewhat savvy about documenting what happens. It's a mess, and we'll try to unthread it for you after thew news.
Do you think Operation Nightlife is using excessive force? Is there ever a circumstance where students should not be allowed to videotape police officers on the job? Leave your comments below, e-mail colin@wnpr.org or Tweet us @wnprcolin.
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policing the new haven
This is certainly a major concern of not only Nutmeg Staters, but of all frantic Americans. As a Floridian, I am appalled by the behaviour of these 18 year olds. Imagine swilling beer, "doing" shooters of tequila... and kissing, in PUBLIC! All of you must bear down on this new scourge now, or what will the future hold for all of us? Despair, ruin, and degradation, that's what.
E-mail from Tim
The negative police attitude toward public video recording is broader than just recording police action during arrests.
Since the death of bicyclist Fred Sribnik after a suspicious accident in Canton/Burlington CT, and refusal of the police to consider the involvement of a motor vehicle,
I have set up a digital “crash” camcorder on my bike.
On a recent bike trip in another state, one of our cyclists was deliberately run off the road by someone in a (distinctive) motor vehicle. I was too far ahead to record that, but the same vehicle passed us later in the ride, and the cyclist/victim recognized and identified it.
When the cyclist reported the incident to that state’s police, I hadn’t yet given him the plate number. The officer refused to get involved. After I provided a hi-resolution still of the vehicle, the cyclist forwarded it to the officer, who accused us of looking for trouble, and still refused to do anything (like issue a warning based on a citizen complaint). The officer seemed more irritated by the concept of a citizen recording an assault, than he was that a vehicle operator had placed a cyclist’s life in danger.
The cops won’t do anything without a plate number, or hard evidence of an assault or hit and run, but they’re practically threatening the victim, when the victim does present evidence.
I later learned that state’s police are actively pursuing “Wiretapping” prosecution of citizens making public video recordings with audio, if police are recorded. I certainly felt threatened by the tenor of the conversation my friend had with the officer, once I learned about police behavior regarding recordings.
Public video and audio recording by citizens should be assumed: if we are witnesses to or victims of criminal behavior, whether the crimes are committed by the general public, or members of our police departments. Public video and audio recordings only serve to corroborate our memory of public events, and validate our complaints of crimes committed against us.
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