Republican Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey signed a bill into law on Wednesday, banning citizens from recording video within 8 feet of “police activity.”
Now, in Arizona, people can be charged with a misdemeanor if they record police from less than 8 feet away after receiving a verbal warning while conducting law enforcement activity such as arrests, questioning suspicious individuals and handling those who are emotionally disturbed or being disorderly.
The class 3 misdemeanor will be punishable by up to 30 days in jail, a $500 fine, and up to a year in probation.
Republican state Rep. John Kavanagh sponsored the legislation.
“I can think of no reason why any responsible person would need to come closer than 8 feet to a police officer engaged in a hostile or potentially hostile encounter. Such an approach is unreasonable, unnecessary and unsafe, and should be made illegal,” Kavanagh wrote in an op-ed in the Arizona Republic.
The law, which goes into effect in September, allows for a few exceptions.
According to the bill, when a police encounter is occurring in an enclosed area on private property, a person who is permitted to be there may record closer than 8 feet — “unless a law enforcement officer determines that the person is interfering in the law enforcement activity” or it is unsafe.
A person being questioned may record within 8 feet of the law enforcement officer. During a traffic stop, the vehicle’s occupants may also record the encounter — as long as no one is impeding with “lawful police actions.”
