LASD Officer Richard Gylfie, Photography is Not a Crime
I was very disappointed to learn of the recent run in Photographer Right’s Advocate Shawn Nee had with Los Angeles County Deputy Sheriff Richard Gylfie.
In the video above (edited down from 25 minutes to a little over 9 minutes) Nee documents an altercation he had with Deputy Gylfie while conducting the perfectly legal act of photographing the Los Angeles Hollywood Metro subway station. During the altercation Deputy Gylfie states that it is against the rules for Nee to be shooting in the subway, which is in fact incorrect. Law enforcement officials ought to know and understand the law as it pertains to the areas that they patrol.
More than anything I was disappointed in how Gylfie bullies Nee and especially how he threatens to turn his name over to the FBI to have him detained and inconvenienced in the future simply because the officer has the power to put his name on a list. As photographers we should not be subjected to this sort of harassment by law enforcement. Using 9/11 and terrorism as a bully pulpit is no excuse. It is simply not illegal to photograph subways.
This video should make you mad. Abusive cops like Gylfie don’t deserve to wear the badge. If this video makes you mad as well, please take a second to digg this story here.
On FriendFeed, this post was liked by 12 people and commented on 6 times 
[...] [...]
This cop’s argument doesn’t make sense. He states taking photos isn’t an illegal act, yet he stops the photographer to see if he’s doing something illegal. So, if photography isn’t illegal what was his reason for questioning the photographer in the first place?
I really wish the cops in the country actually knew the laws they were supposed to be upholding.
http://www.facebook.com/people/Richard-Gylfie/1559671210
Hawk, Thanks for posting this. Here is a copy of the note that I sent to City Attorney Gennaco and to Councilman Garcetti.
==============
http://discarted.wordpress.com/2009/11/08/la-sheriffs-unlawfully-detain-photographers-rights-advocate/
As a resident of Los Angeles County I am appalled by the events that take place in this video. Not only does Deputy Richard Gylfie #2955 not know the law, his use of threats and intimidation while illegally detaining this photographer in violation of his First Amendment rights is extremely disturbing and something that I believe calls for disciplinary action as well as an Internal Affairs investigation. I also ask that I be advised of the outcome of this investigation.
Sincerely,
Marc Evans
Hermosa Beach
TH, I’m sure you wouldn’t mind a more detailed comment. For now, I’ll stick with a small point of clarification. The sworn officers of the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department are titled Deputy Sheriffs.
Sorry.
Definitely related:
http://tristantom.com/a-funny-take-on-photographer-harrassment/
Got to say, the cop was mostly reasonable, certainly near the end of the video. Initially, I felt he was quite
unreasonable but he explained clearly why the photographer was being detained and I felt that the photographer was being rather defensive and uncooperative. No, he wasn’t doing anything illegal but if the police officer became susipicious then he was quite within his right to investigate.
That said, in his position I would have, and have, felt rather put out. In his position I probably would have just dropped the attitude, cooperated and explained exactly why and what I was photographing and he perhaps wouldn’t have been detained for 30 minutes. I have been approached by police officers on a number of occasions while out taking photos and simply explaining what I was doing, which was no real hardship, had the police on their way and me continuing to take photos.
I’m more often in agreement with you on matters such as this Thomas, but on this occasion I can’t say the attitude of the photographer helped him one iota.
I’m really sick of people saying that he should’ve just been nicer to the cops and it all would’ve ended amicably.
That’s probably true, but why should take this shit from the police? They’re here to serve and protect us. They’re not above the law, or some holy man, they’re the public’s servants. If he starts wildly accusing you of being a terrorist, I wouldn’t just calm down and explain my point to him.
Letting the police walk all over us is giving up.
You should try doing this in Britain where it seems taking pictures anywhere is becoming ‘illegal’ as far as public servants are concerned. It has become illegal to photograph in places like train stations because of the so called ‘terrorist threat’!
If taking photographs is such a threat why wasn’t it stopped in the ’70s and ’80s when the IRA were planting all the bombs?
It’s all about public fear and control.
Thanks for that clarification Trevor.
Jeffry, I agree with you. While certainly Shawn probably could have talked his way out of this altercation, that’s not really the point. The fact of the matter is that he was doing a perfectly legal activity. Having an”attitude” about being detained by the police, should not have you subjected to being threatened with arrest or with being put on an FBI hit list for the purpose of inconveniencing you without a trial in the future.
This sort of intimidation should not be tolerated. I do hope that disciplinary action is taken against this officer. Had Deputy Ego kept his ego in check and dealt with this situation responsibly I’d have more respect for him. But it’s his job to maintain composure and not to threaten to do illegal things to people like put them on FBI lists to have them inconvenienced in the future.
Man, that´s F´ed up! Props to the photographer for staying calm!
Glad stuff like that doesn´t happen i Norway..
was he actually detained before his attitude came out ?
Be honest the attitude was first , the Cop was reciting what they tell him to say. After attitude came detainment.
Sure the cop did wrong, so sue him and get it cleared up, but dont play the accidental victim, you totally acted a jerk and in this day and age who knows maybe they have reasons to ask us basic questions that we don’t know of… Thanks for ensuring they will be bigger jerks to the rest of us…
I have just watched the full 25 minutes and in my opinion the photographer was really provoking with the way he answered the questions. Of course it is his right to shoot there but its the job of a policemen to investigate when he is suspicious. If the photographer would have used some common sense and if he would have answered politely and detailled what he was doing I think the whole situation would have been over after 2 minutes.
I also felt like he wanted to provoke him to have some taped material that he can publish on the web. Of course there are real situations like these and those should be taped and published but this is not one of them. It will also not be the right one to fight for this issue.
I must say that I am absolutely appalled by the behaviour exhibited by Richard Gylfie #2955. The act of photography is absolutely not a crime and the bullying that those charged with with public safety display towards the public is absolutely reprehensible. I would go as far to say that Gylfie #2955 is much a terrorist as much as any Al-Quieda member. Gylfie #2955 is wilfully using the threat of force to coerce a member of the public guilty of no crime what so ever to his ends. Gylfie #2955 is ignorant of the law and statutes relating to the MTA. His strong arm tactics and extravagant claims at the beginning of the video are clearly an attempt to force compliance and submission. Further Gylfie seems to be a personal mission to subjugate, humiliate and harass and individual that he does not like. First he says that what he is doing is illegal, he then moves to say that Shawn is being detained to determine if illegal activities have been conducted. These 2 statements not jibe and it makes the officer appear as if he his searching for a reason to indulge his own personal prejudices.
Respect must be given to Shawn for defending his rights and his liberty, irrespective of any attitude that Shawn may have displayed – his detainment is unlawful. Why shouldn’t he actively and vocally defend that which is his, is personal liberty and justice not a bed rock foundation of the American constitution ?
The real terrorists are those use terror incite the fear, unrest, victimization and personal bullying we see in cases like this. This must not stand.
The 911 terrorists appeared to be doing nothing illegal until they actually took over the airplanes. I think this photographer needs to be investigated further as he probably is a terrorist. What other reason would anyone have to photograph turnstyles at a known terrorist target? Bring him to Guatanamo.
If you want to find terrorist, how about looking for mid east looking people?
I bet ya that would work.
I think that the billions of tax dollars given to the banks should have been spent to educate law enforcement. It’s not just photographers who are being mistreated by law enforcement officers.
All kinds of people are subjected to cops over reacting to “contempt of cop”.
If I’m stopped and questioned by an officer for doing something that is not illegal I get an attitude as well.
Having said that, when I have actually done something wrong…..for instance speeding….I am always polite and cooperative with the officer.
Bottom line is that despite some folks worry about the over hyped threat of terrorism, law enforcement officers don’t have some special right to stop me and ask me questions just because they want to…..making up some bogus bullshit excuse about homeland security to back them up.
By the way ignorance of the law is not an excuse for me and should not be an excuse for a cop.
The cop was doing his job and the photographer was clearly trying to provoke him. The photographer clearly has a poor understanding of the law and should really educate himself before lecturing a police officer (or anyone else for that matter) on what our “rights” are.
Bottom line… just show your ID & be on your way… it is ovious Mr. Nee was looking for a confrontation.
WHEN I TAKE THE TRAIN AND SEE SOMEONE TAKING PHOTO’S I GET SCARED. I DO NOT WANT TO DIE IN A SUBWAY TERRORIST ATTACK LIKE IN TOKYO, MADRID, LONDON OR ANY OTHER PLACE WHERE THE POLICE WERE TOO POLITICALLY CORRECT TO AT LEAST ASK WHAT PEOPLE ARE DOING WHEN ACTING SUSPICIOUSLY (AND YES TAKING PHOTO’S OF A POSSIBLE TERRORIST TARGET SEEMS SUSPICIOUS TO ME). THOMAS HAWK IS LUCKY SOME GUN TOTING REDNECK DIDN’T SHOOT FIRST AND ASK QUESTIONS LATER THINKING HE WAS SAVING THE CITY FROM A TERRORIST ATTACK.
Ask yourself how the photographer would have responded if a regular citizen would have asked him what he was taking pictures of. Would he have reacted the same way? Unlikely. Was the officer threatening when he first asked the photographer what he was taking pictures of? No, he was not. The photographer was intent on provoking the officer to gain a reaction.
The cop was a bully. The cop violated Dept policy by threatening to put the photographer on an FBI watch list. The cop doesn’t have that authority. The cop was pushing his weight around because he could. The photographer had no duty to be nice to the cop because the photographer wasn’t violating the law. Were I the photographer, I’d sue the cop for an illegal stop. I would allege the cop did NOT have reasonable suspicion to believe a crime had been committed. The cop wasted taxpayer money and did not one thing to keep LA safer. The cop wasn’t ever interested in anything other than throwing his weight around.
Anyone watch Rick Sanchez on CNN?
I saw a video of him a few weeks ago criticizing one Sheriff about detaining people the Sheriff thought were illegal immigrants without proof.
Then, he declares this Deputy Sheriff a “hero” for doing essentially the same thing to the photographer. That’s right. “Hero.”
…
While I understand what Shawn Nee is trying to do, I disagree with how he’s going about it. He’s taking pictures of public places, which yes, he is allowed to do, but he is presenting himself as a suspicious character to the authorities that are trying to prevent him from taking photographs. I understand you’re “allowed” to be elusive in providing personal details to police officers, but there’s no NEED to do it and draw attention to yourself. I agree that Nee is highlighting the fact that many police officers don’t know the law (I have personally been affected by exactly this) but I can’t help but wonder, how many times does he go out, photograph public locations suspiciously, encounter some kind of security guard/law enforcement official/etc., and have a pleasant encounter that he fails to report.
Yes, there should be a greater awareness of photographer’s rights. But in my humbled opinion, I don’t feel this is the way of going about it. Are you allowed to take pictures of individuals in public? Yes, as long as you don’t use them in particular ways without the permission of individuals in the picture. However, is that always right (for example, when somebody doesn’t want to be photographed, even if they’re in public)? That’s a grey area, but one where you can find an answer through common sense and respect for somebody else’s dignity. The common sense thing that Shawn could have easily done to avoid this situation would have been to explain “no, I’m not a terrorist… yes, I’m a photographer… I know it’s within my rights as a photographer to take these pictures… I’m trying to raise awareness of a photographer’s rights, according to the law.” Taking such an approach would likely have diffused the situation much sooner, but his borderline antagonistic, almost teasing-like, tongue-waving, “hey, I can do this, what are you going to do about it?” attitude is what irritates this police officer, and what leads him to go beyond his proper authority.
I can’t believe that your clarifying that, an officer trying to keep high intilect terrorist from using “rights” to excape the inconvinence of being detained is cruel and “abusing the system” and therefore should be exploited as harrasment of “photograher’s rights.” I suppose the government should stop putting people through the inconvienince of searching it’s visitors and citizens at airports…some of us appreciate officers who risk their lives for even the ungratful inconvinienced. If you have been exposed to “crime scenes”, or even been involved in war activity in the name of photography, maybe YOU would understand the compromise you put America in by exploiding sensitive material. You want to be able to do your job, don’t complain about how someone (who you know nothing about prior to this incident) is doing his.
Doesn’t anyone watch the news? I feel protected with officers like him on patrol look at all the terrorist that DO attack the public transit world wide so he wasn’t wrong to be cautious.
This video does make me angry. You think that because you live in America you have the right to do anything you want, whenever you want, reguardless if there is a law against it. I agree that taking pictures is usually not against the law, but in a subway, that could be a terriost target, you should not have the right to take pictures without being questioned by law enforcement officers.
Deputy Gylfie’s detention of Nee was a little lengthy, but whose fault is that? If Nee would have provided I.D. and answered the questions Gylfie was asking without being evasive, the detention would have been much shorter.
When authorities ignore signs of possible terrorist activity, people pay a steep price. For example, Ft. Hood, Texas. Need I say more?
I’m sick of hearing about peoples “rights”. Yes, we live in a great country, one that I would defend to the death(and I am a U.S. Army Veteran), but we do not automaticaly have rights. I don’t want some jackass photographer taking pictures of me just because I happen to be in a public place.
It is true that Nee did not have to be polite to the Deputy. That just shows that Nee has no manners and his parents did not teach him the basics of common courtesey.
It sounds like Nee wanted to be detained, and was prepared for it. His evasive anwsers to the Deputy’s questions sounded rehersed. I’m sure Nee is one of these liberals that think the world owes them somehting and will sue the county, costing the taxpayers millions. Good job Nee, you should be brought up on charges of fraud!
I have the perspective of being both an amateur photographer and a cop. I get frustrated at seeing this from both sides. As a cop, we are sworn to “serve and protect” even those who cannot stand our existence – and we do the best we can. I have done my best to educate my peers with respect to photography and photographer’s rights. We (the cops) are taught to be observant and to see things that would tend to be criminal in nature and then act on it. Are we right all the time…no. However, for the most part 99.99% of the officers out there are doing these things not to be “bullies” or because of their “ego” as has been cited. It is because we are trying to keep everyone safe from the bad guys. If the cops saw someone taking pictures of a bridge – did nothing about it – then later the bridge was blown up and the citizens found out the police observed someone “suspicious” photographing it – what would be the repercussion for the police? Would the photography community stand by the officer or the department and say the officers had no right to investigate such activity? Yes, people are always “suspicious looking” with the benefit of hindsight. (By the way…can someone here tell me what a terrorist looks like? I have been doing this for 20 plus years and I don’t have a clear image – no pun intended – of what one looks like. Keep in mind – you cant stereotype. Some one who posted here said we should look for middle easterners. I hope that was satire.)
As a photographer, what I do is respectfully listen to an officer. Then, once they see that I am not the bad guy, I explain to them that what I am doing is not against the rules or the law. If they insist, then I move on and make a complaint to that department about the officer’s conduct – if their conduct was an issue – if not I tell them about them trying to enforce something that is not illegal. (First, I would make sure it was not against the law to photograph what I was photographing.)
To Scott Bourne… [“Were I the photographer, I’d sue the cop for an illegal stop. I would allege the cop did NOT have reasonable suspicion to believe a crime had been committed.”] I would not tell you how to photograph a landscape given your experience and expertise. I hope you would use the same restraint and not say the officer had no reasonable suspicion. Most likely, you are not privy to the intelligence reports and threats that come out daily in a police department. You would surely lose this suit.
I have an idea. Why doesn’t the photography community take information to your local police department and ask them what they are teaching their officers about photography and the way they are treating photographers. Chief’s love to go to community meetings – go to a community meeting and ask them about it. See what they can do in the police in-service training to educate officers about this problem. Call the police department’s public information officer and ask them if they can give you the department’s stance on this issue. Talk to county/city managers and get them involved (That is the best way in most cases). Try to work with the police and not be an agitator. Talk to your county/city district attorney’s. Call the precincts and speak with the commanders or supervisors. Better yet, approach the officers and just ask them what the rules are for photography where you are. Explain to them what you are doing. Believe me when I tell you this – There are terrorists out there taking pictures of critical infrastructure (subways, airports, etc). Would you rather the cops sat on their hands? Don’t wait for it to become confrontational.
Another issue is the “bully” aspect. The common thread here is that the officer was being a bully. What are you advocating by posting this officer’s Facebook page? The correct route is to call his supervisor or the internal affairs unit. Putting up someone’s personal stuff is just another form of bullying someone – don’t you think?
Also, if you are one of those haters of the police, when your camera is stolen, call the fire department.
I do not understand why any of these people who are repsponding negativly towards Deputy Gylfie, do not understand that he is protecting the very person who was taking those pictures , although he may not know that. Officer Gylfie took a vow to protect us. I dont know about all of the world, but I personally am scared of the access that the terrorist have in our country, Officer Gylfie lays his life down every day going to Los Angelos , a very dangerous city, where many many people are murdered every day. If he is willing to do this , I think I would trust him to make a decision to ask a citizen very politely ,what he was taking a picture of. He only asked a question, which if it had been answered , would have stopped the whole thing, I would personally rather answer the question that would have taken mabe two minutes, rather than the twenty five , that Shawn caused to happen himself, simply by not responding to Officer Gylfies request. I saw this video and it looked to me like the guy kind of liked making some kind of trouble just so he could get some attention. I am so grateful to you personally Officer Gylfie, if you are reading this ,for putting your life on the line , for sacrificing what may happen to you every day of your life, off duty and on. Making the ultimate sacrifice if neccisary. Shame on you Shawn!!!!!!Shame Shame Shame,
I wholeheartedly support Shawn for what he is doing. He along with several other LA photographers have enacted a change in the way Downtown LA building security deals with photographers. There are a few videos on the discarted site showing groups of rent a cops acting like goons harassing photographers on public sidewalks where the rent a cops have no authority. A few of his videos later and now the same security comes out and hands out a slip of paper defining their photo policy.
Officer Gylfie’s first sentence of this encounter was a LIE! “you can’t take photographs”. Then “it’s against MTA rules”. Both are lies. Shawn was detained for a perfectly legal action.
Because Shawn stands up for his rights, Gylfie goes onto threaten to put his name on a watchlist so he is harassed everytime his ID gets checked. That is insane!
Officer Gylfie says over and over he is conducting an investigation, but instead of investigating he lectures Shawn about Al-qaeda.
It seems like several people in this comment thread are happy to give up their rights in the name of safety well Benjamin Franklin thinks you deserve neither.
oh and al-qaeda can just google the pics of the turnstiles.
http://tinyurl.com/yj8qbgr
Well said “CY.” Unfortunately I think your message will not get through to the thick headed people who want to keep talking about the “photographer’s” rights being violated instead of looking at the big picture.
I am also in Law Enforcement and my response has always been “if you can tell me exactly what a criminal looks like or when they start getting CRIMINAL tatooed on their forhead then I will confront only them.”
We are living in a time when everyone is forcing each other to be “politically correct” and in doing so we leave the door wide open for those who wish to harm us (free citizens of America).
Most recently, look at all the signs that were ignored regarding the Fort Hood shooting suspect. People are afraid to do their jobs for fear of being “crucified” by the activists. I do my job daily for the hundreds of thousands of quiet grateful people. We should not be fearful of being judged by the ignorant.
I am confident I will be judged, some day, by a higher power. I go home daily knowing that I helped make a difference, for the better, in someones life. What good has this photographer done. There is a time and place to defend people’s rights and this was not it.
I have found in my 25 years of law enforcement that law abiding, not guilty, clear thinking people without a hidden agenda are usualy grateful to know we are out there doing our job.
I have also found that “most” activists and liberals are people who have not yet been victimized by the criminals in our society
Maybe Gylfie should have been at the local donut shop drinking coffee and having a donut so Nee could have photographed him and then ranted “is this what our taxes are paying for?”
There aren’t too many other jobs out there where your “damned if you do and damned if you don’t!” You should all be grateful that there are still people who want to do this thankless job.
[...] most respected photographers in arena of photographer’s rights, has plenty to say about the moral and legal aspect of limiting a photographer’s public photography [...]
As a photographer, we’ve all experienced some type of oppression at some point when shooting in public. There’s no aurguring that the officer was overstepping his authority and just being difficult.
However, the photographer seems to have an anti-authority and combative attitude right from the start. I believe if he would have merely answered the officers questions, he wouldn’t have been detained so long. For instance, when officers / security guards ask what I’m shooting and why, I tell them politely. “I’m a stock photographer shooting images of street scenes.” – For instance. I often end up engaging security officials in conversation. I don’t stand there and repeatedly say “I’m not breaking the law!”
Even if you know you’re not breaking the law / rules, just be pleasant, honest and engaging. If you are quarrelsome and resistant, then you will only prolong being hassled.
Shawn is obviously asking to be detained!
I don’t believe that intentionally provoking an officer proves a point at all. Shawn was obviously intent on creating a situation where he appears suspicious and calls attention to himself within sight of an officer. He was wired to film the ordeal that he created in the first place. I don’t think he even answered a single question the officer asked.
The officer merely asked “why are you taking pictures?”, a polite response might be “I am photo enthusiast getting some shots of this busy subway scene.” Instead Shawn answers contemptuously “because I want to.” Come on! That’s just blatantly disrespectful!
The officer’s whole terrorist list threat was a little overboard. However, you can’t blame the officer for getting a little ticked off by Shawn’s evasive and contentious nature. I can equate this to walking around in the subway leaving suspicious parcels laying around and then calling it harassment when an officer asks what your doing.
Any photog who shoots in public will invariably experience some type of questioning from an authority figure. However, if you are cordial and cooperative, the ordeal should go smoothly.
To all you sheep who decided on the side of the Cop. Shame on you. You will soon get the Country you deserve. 1938 Germany comes fast to mind.
I personally applaud Shawn and his willingness to stand up for his rights granted him by the Constitution. You all would rather throw that away.
The Millions of lives lost defending that Constitution will soon be for naught thanks to thinking like yours.
Sieg Heil and Have your papers ready for inspection you Sheep!