28 Aug 2010

Facing prison for filming US police

When police arrested Anthony Graber for speeding on his motorbike, the 25-year-old probably did not see himself as an advocate for police accountability in the age of new media.

But Graber, a sergeant with the Maryland Air National Guard, is now facing 16 years in prison, not for dangerous driving, but for a YouTube video he posted after receiving a speeding ticket.


(The interesting part is at the end of the video)

The video, filmed with a camera mounted on Graber's motorcycle helmet designed to record biking stunts rather than police abuse, shows a plain clothes officer jumping out of an unmarked car and pointing a pistol at the motorcyclist.

It does not portray the policeman in a positive light. After he posted the video on YouTube, police raided Graber's home, seized computers and put him in jail.

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