“I was there to take down the names of people who were arrested. As I’m standing there, some African-American woman goes up to a police officer and says, ‘I need to get in. My daughter’s there. I want to know if she’s OK.’ And he said, ‘Move on, lady.’ And they kept pushing with their sticks, pushing back. And she was crying. And all of a sudden, out of nowhere, he throws her to the ground and starts hitting her in the head. I walk over, and I say, ‘Look, cuff her if she’s done something, but you don’t need to do that.’ And he said, ‘Lady, do you want to get arrested?’ And I said, ‘Do you see my hat? I’m here as a legal observer.’ He said, ‘You want to get arrested?’ And he pushed me up against the wall.”-Karen Smith, retired New York State Supreme Court Judge, and official legal observer of the OWS movement
New York City cops threatening to take down an official legal observer, and retired judge, just because she was reminding them of what they legally can and can not do. If this isn’t proof that the United States has become a true Police State, then you’re blind!!!
Here’s more proof of the arrogance of “our” leaders: “Not being familiar with many of the media outlets for which The Awl says these reporters work, I had the list of ‘26 arrested reporters’ checked against the roster of reporters who hold valid NYPD press passes. You can imagine my surprise when we found that only five of the 26 arrested reporters actually have valid NYPD issued press credentials.”-Stu Loeser, NYC Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s spokesperson
First off, he admits 26 reporters were intentionally arrested for covering OWS events. Secondly, the list of 26 reporters includes many arrested at OWS events outside New York, so why would they have New York press credentials?!
Some examples: Photojournalist Kristyna Wentz-Graff, arrested in Milwaukee! Reporter Jonathan Meador, arrested in Tennessee! Why do they need New York press credentials?
The British The Guardian reports that even a reporter with United Nations credentials was arrested.
Examples of harassment: Julie Walker, of NPR, says cops ripped her recorder out of her hands. Doug Higginbotham, from New Zealand, had his New York press ID stripped off him by the NYPD.
Most arrested reporters are being let go, but some are being charged with disorderly conduct.
If you’re wounder how to get a New York City press credential, here’s a quote from the NYPD web site: “Applicants also must submit one or more articles, commentaries, books, photographs, videos, films or audios published or broadcast within the twenty–four (24) months immediately preceding the Press Card application, sufficient to show that the applicant covered in person six (6) or more events occurring on separate days.”
Did you notice; in order to get New York City press credentials you have to already be reporting, apparently illegally, news about New York City!!! That’s typical Police State mentality.
On top of all that, the OWS movement actually got a restraining order against the NYPD, but the cops, and city officials ignored it: “When the cops raided Zuccotti Park, lawyers for Occupy Wall Street immediately woke up a judge with a civil liberties background and asked for help. Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Lucy Billings signed an early-morning order temporarily barring cops from keeping protesters and tents out of Zuccotti Park. But within hours, she was off the case as court administrators prepared to randomly choose a new judge — and excluded Billings’ name from the list of candidates.”-The New York Daily News