The ‘standard practise’ of police filming

They’ve used a surveillance montage of mine, on the Bristol Indymedia front page. It introduces this item. Seems to be ‘getting about’ this one.

The ‘standard practise’ of police filming:

Shot by both sides

by John Serpico 12:44pm Sat Jul 20 ’02

As local residents gathered at the Baptist Mills side of the St Paul’s roundabout for the demonstration against street crime, protesting against and pushing onto the agenda the lack of safety in the area, police also descended and immediately started to film people.

Taken aback by this apparently inexplicable intrusion, a number of people approached the police and enquired why they were filming. The new chief inspector for the Ashley area replied that it was purely for the safety of the people who were gathering as well as for the safety of the police.

‘If there are any complaints made against anyone or any accusations of misconduct,’ he said. We will have film evidence to refer to. For example, if anyone complains of any damage that might be caused we will be able to refer to the film and be able to say whether the damage was there beforehand. He continued: ‘If there are any complaints against the police then there will be evidence of that too. It’s for everyone’s protection’.

He then apologised for not asking permission to film in advance but said that nowadays the filming of any public gathering is ‘standard practise’.

There are others filming here too, he said ‘The television people for example’.

But why are you – the police – filming us? somebody persisted ‘We haven’t done anything and this is a peaceful gathering. You don’t film the muggers and rapists, do you?’

In response, the officer replied, somewhat unbelievably ‘Yes’, we do film the muggers.

When the officer armed with the camcorder (and bad moustache) was asked if a copy of the film would be available to anyone wishing to view it, he replied ‘No’. The person asking him knew this to be wrong and referred to the Data Protection Act. The chief officer then stepped in and said that anyone wishing to have a copy of the film is indeed entitled to it, conceding that his fellow officer was wrong to say otherwise.

In as much as the officer in charge was attempting to be reasonable, there is a problem here. As he stated, nowadays the police filming of any public gathering is indeed ‘standard practise. But when did this happen? How did this come to be? The police seem to view it as part of their job to film any kind of demonstration, but has any legislation been passed to make this a ‘standard practise’? Is it now written down in their operations manual that public gatherings must be filmed? If not, then is it down to a decision by the officer in charge whether or not to deploy one or more of his men with cameras? What is the criteria? What might demand a situation to be filmed? The kind of people in attendance? The possibility of misconduct? It may well be ‘standard practise’ but it is a fact that there are many public gatherings that are not filmed.

What happens to the films they make? How long are they kept? Who gets to view them?

As he also stated, there is often other people filming events too, such as television/news crews. However, it is possible to object to these people filming you and to make them stop. You cannot request that the police stop filming you. Anyone requesting too loudly or too physically is liable to be arrested. Anyone who dons a mask or a disguise (face paint, even) in an attempt to not be recognised on film can also be arrested.

The standard reply to questions such as this is ‘if you have nothing to hide then you have nothing to fear’. That may well be, but on this particular occasion at this particular gathering, people were objecting to the escalation in anti-social crime and the lack of response from the authorities in allowing an area of Bristol to be and remain a free-for-all, mugging and raping zone. They then found themselves to be the ones under police surveillance. Suddenly it felt like being caught in the middle. The criminals on one side and the police on the other. Shot by both sides.

http://bristol.indymedia.org/front.php3?article_id=1436&group=webcast