First Amendment 'Auditor' Is Pain in the Ass at DPD Substation, Prompting Police Response

Late Monday afternoon, the Observer received a statement from the Dallas Police Department about a "civil rights video" filmed over the weekend at the department's southeast patrol division. It sounded very serious.

"The Dallas Police Department is aware of the video filmed at the Southeast Division over the weekend and takes the protection and preservation of every person’s Constitutional rights very seriously," the statement read. "The department is currently reviewing the officers' actions as it relates to General Order 331.00, Public Recording of Official Acts. After an investigation is completed, the department will take the appropriate actions."

The video, filmed Sunday, was released as a "tyrant alert." A man who only identifies himself as News Now approaches the substation on foot, apparently filming with both his phone and a body camera.


As he approaches the substation's parking lot, a couple of officers on outside security duty — something that's been common practice since the 2015 attack on DPD headquarters — ask for the man's identification. This, of course, is exactly what he wants. Inevitably, at about the 2:15 mark, he asks the cops if he's being detained, the refrain of cop-watchers everywhere. He repeatedly asserts his rights to film the officers.

The video goes on for about five more minutes, with the man refusing to give the cops his name and the cops standing around, annoyed. At one point, the officers apparently put him in handcuffs as they pat him down for weapons, but they quickly let him go, allowing him to head inside the station and continue filming.

Tyranny isn't what it used to be.