Arkansas lawmaker arrested after filming traffic stop

[Judi Lynn]

Source: Associated Press

Arkansas lawmaker arrested after filming traffic stop
Andrew Demillo, Associated Press

Updated 5:50 pm, Monday, September 26, 2016

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) — An Arkansas legislator who co-sponsored a law aimed in part at preventing authorities from prohibiting the filming of an arrest was arrested Monday after police said he refused to leave the area of a traffic stop he was recording.

Little Rock police said they arrested Democratic state Rep. John Walker, a civil rights attorney who has represented a group of black families in a long-running school desegregation lawsuit, was arrested on a misdemeanor charge of obstructing governmental operations.

Walker, 79, was released Monday afternoon from the Pulaski County jail. He did not immediately return a call to his law office or an email seeking comment.

According to the arrest report, Walker was filming police after they had pulled over a driver for not having a license plate whom they later arrested for having active warrants. When the driver asked why Walker was filming him, he replied: "I'm just making sure they don't kill you," the report said. The passenger in the vehicle police had pulled over also was arrested for a failure to appear warrant.



Read more: http://www.chron.com/news/education/article/Arkansas-lawmaker-arrested-after-filming-traffic-9289367.php

---

[center]

~ ~ ~

Three cheers for Democratic state Rep. John Walker!

[Ohioblue22]

1. If it's legal to record them who'd he get this?

[drm604]

10. It's not clear that it is legal.

It certainly should be legal, but the article doesn't say if the bill he sponsored was passed.

[forest444]

15. Today's Arkansas is a Mobutu-style autocracy.

It's legal, or illegal, if certain good awl boys say it is.

[KT2000]

2. cops really goofed on that one

good for Rep. Walker!

[sakabatou]

6. Yup

[ColemanMaskell]

3. Thanks for sharing that article

[kristopher]

4. Signed in just to send this one to the greatest mage. K&R nt

[zonkers]

5. Thank you Kristopher. Glad you signed in!

[raging moderate]

7. Thank you, Representative John Walker.

I hope you get that law passed, for all of us.

[Festivito]

8. OBSTRUCTING potentially illegal and life threatening GOVERNMENTAL OPERATIONS eom

[drm604]

9. It isn't clear from the article whether or not the bill he sponsored actually passed.

Anyone know anything about it?

[fifthoffive]

11. Unclear

It's called a law, not a bill in the article. If the author knows the difference is also unclear.

[drm604]

12. Bad journalism

The author should have made it clear. I hate it when journalists are so vague about important details.

[ManiacJoe]

13. There are legal and illegal ways to video the cops.

He seems to have chosen poorly, based on the reporting.

[Hassin Bin Sober]

14. What "reporting" are you basing this on?

[ManiacJoe]

16. The link in the OP.

[Hassin Bin Sober]

19. Check again. Charges were dropped and they apologized.

And no, I don't believe the police report.

I've seen hundreds of these videos. The pigs usually go apeshit about a person with a camera "encroaching on their traffic stop" while they ignore people without cameras walking by or standing even closer.

[ManiacJoe]

20. Good to hear!

Link to the updated story:
http://www.chron.com/news/crime/article/Police-launch-investigation-into-Arkansas-9295070.php

[LanternWaste]

17. And there it is...

And there it is...

[Seeking Serenity]

18. Case dropped for Arkansas lawmaker filming police

LR chief offers an apology; won’t accept, says Walker

http://m.arkansasonline.com/news/2016/sep/28/case-dropped-for-lawmaker-filming-polic-1/#/