Photography = terrorism

Or How the NYC police tried to terrorize and intimidate me today!

So lets see I decide to head out to Coney Island and get some photographs of it Sunday with people since this is its last labor day and suddenly find myself in a very bad version of some Kafka's story with odd bits of "V" tossed in for good measure as I find myself the target of police harassment and intimidation!

I step off the train onto the Coney Island subway platform and notice high in the arched roof beams of the old BMT station a deflated  balloon and lift my Nikon D200 up with the 28-200mm to take a quick shot of an image that seemed for a moment to symbolize the tragic end of an era for Coney.

Immediately I have some not so nice officers yell out to me to hold where I am, No photographs in the station the call out. they cop walk up to me and ask me in the most imperious tones to come with them. photography isn't allowed in the NYC subway system and I am told I am breaking the law! The officer leading this idiocy of a farce is officer ""Nikas""  in a white shirt (Capt or lieutenant I couldn't tell)
I read his name plate and also the plate of another officer named "Gentile" they have the only name plates near enough for me to read Its Officer "Nikas" who is adamant to explain to me that I have to give him my ID, Officer “Gentile” orders me not to put my hands in my pocket or open my bag and that they are going to ticket me for breaking the law.

I go out of my way to comply with the officers request, go slow when Officer Gentile cautions me as I pull my big biker style wallet out of my front pocket to get my drivers License for them. I ask if I can open my Lowepro camera bag to get a pen and am informed to not try and to keep my hands by my side and to not move around I shrug and comply. (during this conversation the term breaking the law changes midway to breaking the rules of conduct of the NYC subway system ).

The words "ticket" and "jail" and "heavy fine" are used repeatedly by officer ""Nikas"" and officer Gentile who is the one who admonished me for having my hands in my pockets, "Nikas" is the head of this group of cops and is the only one who keeps talking to me.
I inform officer "Nikas" that there is no such law on the books preventing me from photographing in the subway system, at this point he changes his wording to I am breaking the NYC subway "rules of conduct" to which I reply that no such rule exists preventing me from doing as such.

I point out to officer Nikas that the ACLU has won a number of cases against the police and the city when they have tried to prevent them from taking photos in public and at one point I even offer to show the Officer what I photographed as a simple gesture for him to back down but its ignored
This seems to continue for many minutes or it could have been seconds its one of those moments where time seems to lose all meaning and an hour can be a tick of the second hand with Officer "Nikas" adamantly arguing that There is a law and or rule and I am in big trouble.

I am left alone for a minute in a circle of about 6 Cops doing that standing, circling, processing, ignoring the Perp, making themselves look busy thing they do when they have a suspect ; Officer ""Nikas"" is talking to one of the boys in blue consulting his big handy book of Regs and such and returns with one page and points out one reg title that pertains to photography in the subway system; its on a page with no title and is non explanatory other than saying that there is a rule pertaining to photography in the subway system.

I point out to officer "Nikas" that what he has shown me pertains to needing a permit if your shooting commercially in the subway system and want to put down a tripod or equipment. it does not apply to someone just taking a photograph I point out that all the people who got off the subway car I was in had digital cameras of one sort or other ( I don't point out that I was the only person on the car with a professional camera with a long lens). I was not the only person stepping onto the platform who I noticed taking pictures of the station or each other and I did point this out to the officer.
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Officer "Nikas" Adamantly says NO! it now pertains to ANY! Photography, I replied thats bull (just to note that the officer specifically stated that the rule now applied to all photography even though the Reg on the sheet I was shown specified nothing of the sort).

The words "were giving you a ticket if I you don't stop talking we will lock you up" are used repeatedly to which I reply go ahead give me the ticket and I will be happy to go to court, after repeating this a couple of times Officer ""Nikas"" tells me to follow him and proceeds to walk me down the ramp from the Coney island stop subway platform. As we go Officer ""Nikas"" informs me he isn't giving me a a ticket and that his style is to talk to people and give a warning rather than give a ticket and that I should watch myself because I pointed a "finger" at him and that is a bad habit and aggressive and threatening the words Jail and stay overnight are repeated a number of times as we go down the ramp(I didn't bother to mention that he had been shoving his "gun" and "badge" in my face and acting in a threating manner as only someone with a license to shoot can throughout this violation of my civil rights).

At the bottom of the ramp I point out I would rather have the ticket to which he replies if he were to give it to me he would have to lock me up and I wouldn't like that, he asks challengingly if i want to say anything and I repeat what bull this is and to give me the ticket at which point deliberately and slowly in a last gesture of intimidation he takes down the information from my drivers license and hands the card back to me.

I just say good bye officer ""Nikas"" and leave the station its 3:28 and I call and leave a rambling incredulous voice mail for my lawyer about the incident and then try to take some photos near the "Famous Nathans" hotdog stand find that my hands are shaking uncontrollably and wonder if am shaking in fear and realize quickly that I am shaking from total and utter anger and rage that this fucking, authoritarian asshole, buttfucking moron had just spent the last 30 some odd minutes attempting to intimidate me illegally and violating my civil right simply because he could!

I graduated from the SVA film school and spent over 10 years involved in the NYC film industry and have had an intimate relationship as a consumer of the mayors office of film as a consumer of street permits, not to mention growing up here and learning photography on the streets of NY I know the my rights and the city regs inside out and upside down and i know how to follow them as an artist and as a professional photographer.

Using the words "this is about safety" and trying to make me feel as if I were some criminal or terrorist for taking a picture totally within the law; at that moment I couldn't have felt more raped and violated by this mini fascist than if he had bent me over physically and used his night stick in my ass! the lack of physicality the imminent implied threat of gun and jail made me feel even more more abused than if he had hit me or broken my camera, Fucking HELL! I would have welcomed that instead.

In the past if the nice policeman in his bad judgment has asked me to stop shooting I have never really had an issue simply putting down the camera or walking on (By the time they asked I have the shot I want anyway) and in the majority of cases i have educated the office or transit official and had good results. if they have wanted to ask me about what I was up to, having a friendly chat has never been an issue and has in many cases worked to my advantage if your the focus of a bored officer on his good side you suddenly have your own free police presence which isn't bad to have in some parts of the city at night.

But this wasn't friendly it wasn't about making sure i wasn't suspicious or anything good, it was about one thing intimidation and humiliation it was about fear, it was about making sure the man with the camera fears the man with the gun and wont ever do it again it was about making me the enemy!!!

Below is the relevant excerpt from the MTA website illustrating the fact that I had every right to take a photograph and that this walking dogshit in a police uniform needs to lose his job.

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1. No person, except as specifically authorized by the Authority, shall enter or attempt to enter into any area not open to the public, including but not limited to train operator's cabs, conductor's cabs, bus operator's seat location, station booths, closed-off areas, mechanical or equipment rooms, concession stands, storage areas, interior rooms, catwalks, emergency stairways (except in cases of an emergency), tracks, roadbeds, tunnels, plants, shops, barns, train yards, garages, depots or any area marked with a sign restricting access or indicating a dangerous environment.
   
   2. No vehicle, except as specifically authorized, may be parked on Authority property.
   
   3. Photography, filming or video recording in any facility or conveyance is permitted except that ancillary equipment such as lights, reflectors or tripods may not be used. Members of the press holding valid identification issued by the New York City Police Department are hereby authorized to use necessary ancillary equipment. All photographic activity must be conducted in accordance with the provisions of this Part.
   
   4. No person may ride on the roof, platform between subway cars or on any other area outside any subway car or bus or other conveyance operated by the Authority. No person may use the end doors of a subway car to pass from one subway car to another except in an emergency or when directed to do so by an Authority conductor or a New York City police officer.
   
   5. No person shall extend his or her hand, arm, leg, head or other part of his or her person, or extend any item, article or other substance outside of the window or door of a subway car, bus or other conveyance operated by the Authority.
   
   6. No person shall enter or leave a subway car, bus or other conveyance operated by the Authority except through the entrances and exits provided for that purpose.
   
   7. No person may carry on or bring to any facility or conveyance any item that:
   
   1. is so long as to extend outside the window or door of a subway car, bus or other conveyance;
   2. constitutes a hazard to the operation of the Authority, interferes with passenger traffic, or impedes service; or
   3. constitutes a danger or hazard to other persons.
   
   Nothing contained in this section shall apply to the use of wheelchairs, crutches, canes or other physical assistance devices.
   
   Below is a link to the complete MTA "Rules of conduct page"
   http://mta.info/nyct/rules/rules.htm#restricted

   Also a link to the NPPA website Pertaining to NYCLU suits against the city for harassing and arresting photographers, press and others shooting on the streets of NYC in violation of their first amendment rights

   http://www.nppa.org/news_and_events/news/2006/08/ny.html

   And the 2 photos that I took stepping of the train that officer "Nikas" decided without ever having seen were worth violating my civil rights