7Online.com: New York City and Tri-State News from WABC-TV: In yet another case of police abuse of authority, photographer Ben Hilder was held for two hours by Weschester Court police for taking photos of a flag in front of the court house.
Ben Hider, Photographer: “Emptied my pockets, searched me, frisked me, started telling me about the recent terrorist threats in America over the past five years and ‘haven’t I been watching the news?
Although David Bookstaver, from the Office of Court Administration apologized to the photographer this is simply unacceptable. Since when is photography a crime? I had my own run in with the Alameda County Sheriffs last year while shooting in Oakland. Although I was only detained for about a half an hour, I was still subjected to a background check and required to show identification to Alameda Sherifs for nothing more than taking photographs.
This is simply unacceptable.