A federal judge ordered the Boston Police Department and the Suffolk County District Attorney to notify cops and government officials that while they are on-duty and in public spaces they can be legally secretly recorded.
René Pérez and Eric Martin, two Boston civil rights activists, were among the plaintiffs in the case against the Boston District Attorney and the Police commissioner.
Judge Patti B. Saris’ judgment on Wednesday enforces an earlier decision from last year, that it was unconstitutional for police to arrest people for secretly recording government officials.
In the December court decision, it was revealed that since 2011, the Suffolk County District Attorney’s office opened at least eleven cases involving a felony charge under a state wiretap law from 1968. During that same time, the Boston Police Department arrested nine people for secretly recording police officers that were on-duty and in public.
The Suffolk County District Attorney and the Boston Police Dept. have 30 days to tell cops and prosecutors about the December ruling.
Photo: “Boston Heights Police Motorcycle” by Raymond Wambsgans is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0
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