Original story: http://blogofbile.com/2010/10/18/settlement-with-department-of-homeland-security-reached/

• LENS, New York Times: You Can Photograph That Federal Building by David W. Dunlap
• Courthouse News Service: U.S. Settles Lawsuit Over Courthouse Photo Ban by Barbara Leonard
• NECN: Settlement announced in NY lawsuit over photo ban
• Pixiq: Feds Agree to Settlement That Photography of Public Buildings is Legal by Carlos Miller
• Brooklyn Daily Eagle: Photography Now Officially Permitted Outside Federal Court
• The Olympian: Feds: People can snap photos outside courthouses
• Reason: Right to Take Photos of Federal Buildings Vindicated
• MSNBC: Feds: People can snap photos outside courthouses
• Harald Online: Feds: People can snap photos outside courthouses
• The Washington Post: Photographer wins settlement over arrest
• The Gothamist: Photographer’s Rights Upheld In Court
• PDN Online: Homeland Security To Allow Photography Outside Federal Buildings
• The DCist: Feds Affirm Photographers’ Rights
• The Washington Post, Federal Eye: Right to photograph federal buildings upheld
• Amateur Photographer: PHOTOGRAPHERS FORCE PICS IN PUBLIC POLICY U-TURN
• LA County Libertarian Examiner: Homeland Security settles with liberty activist, pays damages and concedes public’s right to film
• BoingBoing: Feds forced to admit that it’s legal to take pictures of federal buildings
• We Love DC: Photographers get a win
• Federal Jack: You Can Photograph That Federal Building
• British Journal of Photography: US Homeland Security deparment settles photography rights case
• Change.org: Court Rules It’s Safe to Take Pictures of Federal Buildings — But is It?
• The Washington Post: A win for shutterbugs
• About.com: Is It Illegal To Photograph Federal Buildings?

If you lived in New York City you could carry this 2009-04-03 NYPD Operations Order around to help protect yourself from NYPD officers harassing you for filming around the city.

If you were on “Federally Owned and Leased Facilities”, specifically land used by the DOT, you could use this bulletin to try to scare off the DHS.

Now if you happen to be on federal courthouse property (and likely any property covered by CFR Title 41, Subpart C, § 102-74.420) you can carry this. My settlement with the Department of Homeland Security regarding my arrest on November 9th, 2009. Below is a summary of the settlement.

1. The DHS admits that the § 102-74.420 does not “prohibit individuals from photographing (including motion photography) the exterior of federal courthouses from publicly accessible spaces, such as streets, sidewalks, parks and plazas; and FPS has not construed any other federal regulation or federal statute to prohibit such photography of the exterior of federal courthouses, though it makes no representation about local rules or orders.”
2. “FPS will provide a written instruction to its officers and employees engaged in law enforcement, stating that for federal courthouses under the protective jurisdiction of FPS, there are currently no general security regulations prohibiting exterior photography by individuals from publicly accessible spaces, absent a written local rule, regulation, or order. The instruction will also inform FPS officers and employees of the public’s general right to photograph the exterior of federal courthouses from publicly accessible spaces.”
3. “Nothing in this agreement precludes FPS or the United States, or any department, agency, agent, officer , or employee of the United States (collectively, the “Government”) or any law-enforcement officer from taking any legally permissible law-enforcement action, including but not limited to approaching any individual taking photographs and asking for the voluntary provision of information such as the purpose of taking the photographs or the identity of the individual, or taking lawful steps to ascertain whether unlawful activity, or reconnaissance for the purpose of a terrorist or unlawful act is being undertaken.”
4. FPS will pay the plaintiff $1500.
5. FPS will pay $3350 in legal fees.
6. I’ll get my memory card back when Julian Heicklen’s case is over.

NYCLU press release below:

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http://www.libertyontour.com/2010/08/06/dhs/

Sorry the footage is sideways. I was holding my cell vertical so as to hold it better in my left hand while recording with a camcorder in my right. You can see two short videos at http://qik.com/bile/videos from before the one below. Adam and Pete of Liberty on Tour were also there along with Darren Wolfe. All of us had at least one camera. There is lots of footage of this.

[qik 401207213c3d4dbcb97ead879c486911]

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FIJA REPORTS 7/27–30/2010

1. FIJA Demonstration of 7/27/10 in Trenton, NJ

It was very hot and sunny day.  I appeared at the U. S. District Courthouse in Trenton, NJ at 11:43 am.  It was so hot that at 12:25, I moved under a tree to distribute the literature.

Two Federal Protective Service police cars and three officers were waiting for my arrival.  One looked at his watch and said that I was early.  He then approached me and said that I could pass out literature as long as I did not block the doorways.  I assured him that I would not.

I started to pass out the American Jury Institute pamphlet entitled “ A Primer  for Prospective Jurors” along with my flyer.  A second police officer approached me and asked for a pamphlet for his report.  I complied.  Soon thereafter the third officer approached me and asked for a pamphlet, which I gave him.

I was not bothered by the police for the rest of my visit, though they and the two police cars remained and were still there when I left at 1:05 pm.  This reception was very much more hospitable than at our previous demonstration at the Trenton courthouse.

There was not much pedestrian traffic, but I passed out about 35 pamphlets.  I encountered interest by a large portion of the people that did pass by.  I also met and discussed legal matters with another pro se litigant who has had similar encounters to mine with the police and the courts.

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