Cops dont like to be recorded

May 1, 2008

Greenacres man says he was arrested due to his disabilities

By Missy Diaz

South Florida Sun-Sentinel
11:51 PM EDT, April 30, 2008

Peter Ballance has long suffered neurological problems, including Asperger’s Syndrome, a form of autism, and speech and memory disorders.

To help him recall conversations, work on his stuttering and put social interactions in perspective, the 63-year-old Greenacres resident does something unconventional. He tape-records his conversations so he can play them back later.

…

Ballance says city employees, both police and code enforcement inspectors, have refused to speak to him when he uses his audio recorder. He also says the city has refused him police protection because of it, citing a 2006 incident in which someone was driving around his neighborhood threatening children. Police who responded spoke to other neighbors but refused to speak to Ballance, the suit states.

…

In 2005, Greenacres police began issuing a parking ticket to Ballance for parking his Honda Accord in a grassy area across the street from his home, something he said he and his neighbors had done for years. He did so, he said, because he needed to get the car out of the driveway while he changed the oil on his Ford station wagon.

About a month before the incident no-parking signs were erected. One of the officers, who recognized Ballance from a previous interaction days earlier, instructed Ballance to turn off his recording device. He refused and an altercation ensued in which the officers tackled Ballance to the ground and handcuffed him, drawing blood on his wrists.

Ok so the guy was in the wrong parking on public property in the grass to change his oil. Still doesn’t give the cops the right to demand him to turn off his recording device. They are public servants on public property doing their job. While on duty, in public, interacting with citizens, they should be recorded.

Written by Mike · Filed Under Police, Politics
Tagged: