Thursday, March 28, 2024
64 F
Oxnard
More

    Latest Posts

    United States Socialist Republic book by HG Goerner

    First Amendment Auditors – Tips for Citizens, Businesses and Government Agencies

    Over the last few years, there has been a nationwide increase of activists and “citizen journalists,” who practice “First Amendment audits” by publicly filming law enforcement officers in order to provoke an illegal response. Most of these encounters involve some sort of confrontation on the part of the auditor and often involve the auditor’s use of degrading language toward the intended target. More recently, the county has seen a trend where auditors are intentionally targeting other public officials and private businesses in the hopes of inciting an inappropriate response.

    The Ventura County Sheriff’s Office would like to provide information and tips on how to interact with First Amendment auditors who appear at private businesses and government buildings within the county.

    In early December, two businesses in Camarillo were visited by two men who consider themselves First Amendment auditors. The “auditors” accessed outside common areas of the businesses like a sidewalk or roadway in front of the business. They used areas that would generally be open to the public and they began filming the businesses and their employees. The behavior of the “auditors” drew the attention of employees of the businesses, and when asked about their reasons for being at the business, the “auditors” either remained silent or engaged in verbal confrontations with the employees, ultimately leading to a law enforcement response. The “auditors” recorded the entire event and later posted their videos on the Internet. In just one week, those videos were viewed more than 150,000 times. Many of the “auditors” have tens of thousands of subscribers to their channels and make money every time one of their videos is viewed. Essentially, the “auditors” generate income through the outrage generated from their videos, whether the outrage is at their behavior or the behavior of the people in the video. One business in Camarillo received dozens of threatening and vile phone calls for two days after the video was posted. Those calls are currently being investigated by the Camarillo Police Department.

    The tactics used by “auditors” have been commonly experienced by law enforcement and other governmental agencies for several years, but the targeting of private businesses is new to the Ventura County area.

    The sheriff’s office would like to share the following tactics that are recommended when encountering First Amendment “auditors.”

    First, “auditors” show up in a public area where filming is legal, but also where the filming is unusual, and will draw the attention of the public. This first step is critical, because it may be out of the ordinary to see someone filming at a business or in a government building. It also makes business owners, employees or the public uncomfortable knowing they are being filmed, and the actions make it more likely that the “auditors” will be confronted.

    Second, when the “auditors” are questioned by employees or owners, they either refuse to answer questions or hurl insults at people. The “auditors” know that as long as they are filming in a public place, they do not owe an explanation to anyone, but they also know that the behavior will likely result in the police being called to investigate. This serves to meet their goal of involving law enforcement in the incident and hoping for some sort of confrontation.

    Third, when police respond to the scene, “auditors” employ the same tactics on law enforcement. They either refuse to respond to questions about their activities or they begin to make offensive comments to the law enforcement officers or to the person who called police. The “auditors” are seeking a verbal confrontation or worse, a physical confrontation with law enforcement officers that they can record and post on the Internet.

    The sheriff’s office has several recommendations on how members of the public, private businesses and government employees should respond and react when coming into contact with the “auditors.”

    First, it is important to know that in general, a person who is in a public place does not have a legal expectation of privacy. That means any person who is recording something occurring in a public place or in view from the public place has a lawful right to record. There are some exceptions to this rule.

    Second, the “auditors” are looking for a confrontation. Do not engage people who are filming unless they directly contact you. If, for some reason, you must come into contact with an “auditor” be courteous and professional, and once it becomes clear they are not present for a legitimate reason, disengage from them. If a confrontation does not occur, they will likely pack up their equipment and go somewhere else.

    Third, if you have any questions about the actions of the “auditors,” call your local law enforcement agency. We are trained to deal with these people, and have learned the best way to respond to them is to quickly determine whether or not a crime has occurred, and if not, disengage from the encounter with them.

    Finally, we would like to remind the public that this is a money-making venture for these subjects. A sure way for them to make money is to record a confrontation and generate outrage. Outrage can take on many forms. When a member of the public watches one of these videos, it is very easy to become outraged at the rude, crude and demeaning comments the “auditors” make to unsuspecting citizens and government employees. Another form of outrage is generated when followers of the “auditors” see behavior they like or don’t like. All of these generate clicks on the “auditors” websites, which translate to income for them. A lack of confrontation leads to fewer videos of interest, fewer clicks on their pages and less income.

    Our best advice is to simply disengage and walk away.


    Get Citizensjournal.us Headlines free  SUBSCRIPTION. Keep us publishing – DONATE

    - Advertisement -

    16 COMMENTS

    5 1 vote
    Article Rating
    Subscribe
    Notify of
    guest

    16 Comments
    Newest
    Oldest Most Voted
    Inline Feedbacks
    View all comments
    William
    William
    1 year ago

    I thought it was illegal to post video for a financial gain if the people in it didn’t give permission. According to this they are making financial gain on Facebook. Long lowland Audit for instance has gained $8000 among others I have names of. I have no problem with these so called auditors but to be rude and start trouble for financial gate. I believe someone should look into this.

    Dotty
    Dotty
    1 year ago
    Reply to  William

    Stop being a lazy liberal William. If you think “someone” should look into this maybe, just maybe, that “someone” should be YOU.

    Instead of being liberal pussy, William, you should try RUGGED INDIVIDUALISM. Sheesh.

    William
    William
    1 year ago
    Reply to  Dotty

    I did and it is illegal. And I am a individual using my right of freedom of speech. I’m a veteran that fought for it.

    Pauline
    Pauline
    1 year ago
    Reply to  William

    The auditor incited nothing. His first amendment rights were violated, and he sued and then donated the $8k to individuals in need in that city. Do some research – it is obvious to see this article is biased I have watched many videos created by first amendment auditors and the majority of them are polite and just exercising their First Amendment rights. They get treated badly by entitled and ignorant public employees.. Are there some bad apples in the group? yes of course just like bad cops, bad teachers etc etc but most of them are very knowledgeable, love the Constitution, and simply want to ensure our rights are not taken away little by little. One way to do that is to exercise those rights and to educate anyone, especially those in power, on what those rights are and that it is “We the people” who are in charge – they work for us.

    Joyce
    Joyce
    1 year ago

    also they edit out their nasty remarks and never show the full start to finish video.

    William
    William
    1 year ago
    Reply to  Joyce

    I thought it was against the law to video tape for financial gain if the people in the video have not given permission to be taped if the video guy will make a financial gain. If they are making money they need to get permission to have the tape shown. If asked if this is for financial gain ,the video guy has to answer the question and he has to have insurance.

    Truth Guy
    Truth Guy
    1 year ago

    During Covid, I took in a great deal of YouTube 🙂 I found first amendment auditors so bizarre! but it was a learning experience. I walked out of my office today to find two people I suspected are 1aa, cameras or GoPro’s on a stick as they randomly filmed. After about 15 minutes I arrived back and they were still at it, they filmed me as I walked back to the building. They were on the sidewalk for a good 30 or 40 minutes.

    Apparently an office assistant went out to ask if they needed anything and they ignored her and pointed towards the building.

    I basically told some of the employees about 1aa and said to just ignore them. They are on the sidewalk filming and that is their right. They have cameras so if you approach them, they are going to film the interaction. They want the attention! They want to post the interaction on Facebook and get clicks from their audience. As long as they’re not harming anyone, on the sidewalk and not private property, then just ignore them. If you call the police, they get the interaction on film and as mentioned above, more attention to their video.

    I find it bizarre but that seems to be the world today. They left after 30 or 40 minutes as no one really gave them any attention.

    Good citizen
    Good citizen
    1 year ago

    It’s sad this is coming from the Ventura police department. Whether or not you agree with their approach, we as citizens NEED first amendment auditors. It plays a small but crucial role in assuring our rights remain just that. Our rights. If you as police officers aren’t doing anything wrong, not violating anyones rights then you shouldn’t have any problem with the auditors now, should you?

    Jamie
    Jamie
    1 year ago
    Reply to  Good citizen

    I absolutely agree. As someone who started out in law enforcement over 25 years ago, it’s a good idea to hold everyone accountable. I don’t like the “auditors” who are rude and obnoxious, but sometimes its a good idea to test the temperament of someone charged with upholding the law.

    Dave Gilmourish
    Dave Gilmourish
    2 years ago

    The argument of “surveillance cameras” being no different is nonsense. They don’t slap you up on the internet and make money by pissing you off. These phony “patriots” have triggered legislation in Arizona and surely others will follow suit. YouTube paying these no job bums has got to stop. You shouldn’t be able to speak disgusting language and make threats of violence with impunity. They’ve turned from filming police into abusing anyone they can irritate enough to get a negative response from. One got shot for harassment of a security guard at a Jewish girl school dressed up like a terrorist. Of course the “auditor” then sued them. This is all about money and willingness to be a certified a-hole. It has to stop being a “job” that you get paid for.

    Jamie
    Jamie
    1 year ago

    They’re not all assholes trying to provoke a response. I dislike hearing some of them as well. However, some of the more respected “auditors” are also confronted by people who would like to provoke a response from them (including police officers). By the way, surveillance cameras, are used for protection. Have you seen some of the interactions police have had with citizens? I have, because I started my career in law enforcement in 1996. I know first hand, it’s a good idea to have cameras on police too. So, yes, they are the same in some situations.

    Dave
    Dave
    2 years ago

    I had my first experience with an “auditor” today. At a Post Office in L.A.The man was dressed in black, a hoodie and baseball cap with a tripod and camera and something strapped across his chest. When I pulled in to the PO’s lot, I noticed this guy. He was walking up to parked cars and using his camera to record their VIN numbers and license plates and then the driver’s face. I watched this for a while and didn’t know what to make of it, so I approached him and asked what he was doing. He said something from behind his mask that I could not understand, the loudly said “Abdullah” then pointed with his finger to the sky and shouted “Allahu Akbar”. I did not know what to make of this but I noticed several people (customers) looking uncomfortable and trying to avoid him.I spoke with several people who were not only perplexed but a little frightened. So I called 911. The police arrived in a few minutes and were professional and calm. They explained to me that he was a 1st Amendment Auditor, something I had not encountered before. From his behavior I had wondered if he had a mental problem of some sort. I left and went home and researched this, which led me here. But the question I now have is this: If this guy is “auditing” the PO employees. does this give him the right to harass and film members of the public? He told me that he could use my license and VIN number to find out where I lived. I consider his comments about tracking me to my home to be threatening. Does a member of the public have any rights in this situation?

    Dotty Pringle
    Dotty Pringle
    2 years ago
    Reply to  Dave

    Can anyone of true authority explain this?

    Dotty Pringle
    Dotty Pringle
    2 years ago
    Reply to  Dotty Pringle

    Hi Dave! I am still researching this and not even our DA’s office has heard of this. Wondering….

    Devon
    Devon
    2 years ago
    Reply to  Dave

    As stated above, VIN #s, license plates, and faces are all visibile when in public from public locations. There is no expectation of privacy and all of these items have already been recorded multiple times on many different video capturing devices on the day in question, and any time one leaves the safety of the inside of their home.

    Jamie
    Jamie
    1 year ago
    Reply to  Dave

    If someone walking down the street sees you walk out of your house, they too, now know where you live. Be careful out there, and watch out for the people with video cameras gathering intel from your vin number and plates to find out where all 50 random people live to do them harm.

    Latest Posts

    advertisement

    Don't Miss

    Subscribe

    To receive the news in your inbox

    16
    0
    Would love your thoughts, please comment.x
    ()
    x