Vancouver Police Confiscate Camera

[Gem]

I'm surprised no one's posted this yet! I heard it on CBC radio on my way home from Uni.

Jason Payne, a veteran photographer for the Vancouver daily, said Monday police kept his camera for more than an hour before returning it.

"The gist of it is they were going to seize my camera as evidence in this situation, and that if I didn't give it up I would be arrested and charged with obstructing justice," Payne told CBC News.

More at: Vancouver Police Confiscate Camera

I was pretty shocked when I heard it on the radio. I don't think it's mentioned in the article but, apparently, they deleted the pictures (or movie?) off his camera after he identified himself as the Press. I felt pretty bad for the guy...

Comments?

[casil403]

Hmmmmm.....I wonder how much of that is directly related to that issue of last year involving the RCMP tasering death of Polish Immigrant Robert Czekanski, and the filming of the entire scene by an observer at Vancouver Airport?

I'm thinking pretty much most if not all of it!

[Lovin]

And it was one more incident last month, when police shoot a guy, and his friend got it on camera, and they delete the footage. Now he's trying to recover the file from the phone to some specialists.
Police here suck !

[AcadieLibre]

They would have been leading me to the cruiser in cuffs, hell would freeze over before I would allow them to trample on my Constitutional rights period. It is not bravado, back in my political heyday when we were fighting the Americans trying to place ICBM's on Canadian soil and being an organizer I was targeted many times and it was just an intimidation attempt. I have been in more paddy wagons then I can count. Not one single time was I ever convicted. There are Constitutional rights for a reason, maybe some will back down but it is abhorrent that people back down. If we all our rights as photographers to be trampled on, what rights will be next. Just on principle I would have been arrested, plain and simple. I am Canadian and I have rights, period.

[Greg_Nuspel]

It small compensation but he should place the officers under citizens arrest and have them charged with destruction of private property, using the RCMP of course. Then sue the police force for loss of potential income, how much are the top photo-journal prizes worth? He may have had the winning photo no one will ever know.

[Marko]

They would have been leading me to the cruiser in cuffs, hell would freeze over before I would allow them to trample on my Constitutional rights period. It is not bravado, back in my political heyday when we were fighting the Americans trying to place ICBM's on Canadian soil and being an organizer I was targeted many times and it was just an intimidation attempt. I have been in more paddy wagons then I can count. Not one single time was I ever convicted. There are Constitutional rights for a reason, maybe some will back down but it is abhorrent that people back down. If we all our rights as photographers to be trampled on, what rights will be next. Just on principle I would have been arrested, plain and simple. I am Canadian and I have rights, period.

Bravo!

I am not really an activist but I too would have done the same thing.
They could have arrested the crap out of me. When you are right, you are right!

[casil403]

I'm actually a bit surprised that this veteran newspaper photographer didn't stand up for his rights but rather let himself be intimidated and harrassed by the VPD.

I can understand the 2nd guy on the street with his friend maybe not knowing his Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms but one would think the journalist photographer knew they couldn't do that?
Know that I know what I know...thanks to this forum, I would let them take me away in cuffs too....while holding my camera firmly in a death grip!

[kat]

And getting a lawyer ASAP! I have a funny feeling that would help too.

[Iguanasan]

I wonder how they would handle someone with a photographic memory!?