Photog Arrested For Taking Pictures
He says he complied, but then moments later, Rensberger says police officers approached asking why he was taking photos of kids.The argument got heated when police say Rensberger started taking photos of the officers, who then arrested him.Rensberger is now facing battery, resisting arrest and obstructing justice.”American’s gone nuts. We can’t take pictures anymore,” said Rensberger.He continued, “Two gentlemen walked into the store and they asked me if I took a picture of Santa and I said yes I did. And they said, my daughter, my child was on his lap, could you delete that picture? And I said, oh, sure.””These officers approached me, one in particular, and asked me, he said, why are you taking pictures of kids? And I was shocked by that,” Rensberger said.”I snapped off a picture of the officers questioning him and at the same time he grabbed my camera, and I reached up with my left hand to catch the camera from hitting the floor and he said don’t you touch me,” he continued.

Don’t you love the way they trump up endless extra charges against people. Battery? Yeah, right.




  1. Jägermeister says:

    When will the police start arresting priests as potential pedophiles?

  2. Heinrich Moltke says:

    People just need to start kicking these cops’ asses. Only then will they hesitate before coming over and harassing you.

    Everybody today is “Mr. Reasonable”. They count on that.

  3. Uncle Don says:

    You want cops after you for taking pictures? Try photographing a train or a railroad boxcar. Claim it’s because you are a model railroader and watch the sparks fly!

  4. Petty Slave says:

    He should have known that you don’t touch a GOD. You will be charged with battery for a touch, just like at some schools you can get suspended for a hug – Zero Tolerance!

    It’s all going according to plan. Break people apart, isolate them, make them feel alone – then you have a nice consumer slave.

    Let me know when the revolution starts.

  5. Animby says:

    The article was not a well-constructed story but one thing struck me: he never did answer the question of why he was photographing kids. In these sensitive days, I should think everyone realizes you ought to get permission from the parents. But that aside, I hate these stories that make out everyone as guilty from the git-go. What happened to the presumption if innocence?

    These cops are so gonna be heroes if they find out this fella is a pornographer…

  6. Improbus says:

    Don’t you dare criticize the blue mafia. You don’t want to end up framed, disappeared or dead.

  7. vaga222 says:

    The guy who took the photo is a photo journalist and afaik was returning from a photoshoot via the mall to do some Christmas shopping.

  8. Steve says:

    #2 You first.

  9. bobbo, how do you know what you know and how do you change your mind says:

    Here’s the BS at the root of part of the problem: “In these sensitive days, I should think everyone realizes you ought to get permission from the parents.”

    Ummmm—NO! The law is actually very clear on the issue of taking pictures in public. Its legal and can be done over the objection of anyone that is in public. Don’t like it?==Don’t go out in public.

    The step from legal to sensitive is much more important a “concept” than the step from sensitive to police stupidity.

    Freedom loving Americans should know this.

  10. billabong3453 says:

    You should not have to explain yourself for taking pictures of kids trains planes or automobiles.Stand up to the pigs and they will back down.Explain to a policeman that your lawyer will be calling his boss to question his actions.Raise hell about this shit and make the public officials realize that all of them are working to serve and protect us.

  11. Luc says:

    I am an amateur photographer. I’ve never had problems with the police (and I don’t live in America, but taking pictures bothers a lot of people. I’ve been approached many times by security guards in malls and other semi-public places to tell me that “you can’t take pictures here” or just regular people who want to know why I photographed a street, corner or square (save obvious landmarks) while they were crossing it. They don’t ask “why did you take my picture,” they ask “why are you taking pictures of this place” as if there were anything suspicious about it. People look a lot more concerned when there are children involved. Some will come up and tell me I need a special permit for that. I say no, I don’t, this is a public space and there is no presumption of privacy here, feel free to call the police. They just shut up and go away. But I usually avoid taking pictures of children just to avoid the trouble. When I take the pictures, I keep them to myself, won’t upload them to my Flickr gallery. It’s a shame, because some of those pictures (and some scenes I see but don’t photograph) are quite beautiful. I’d be glad to give people a copy if they didn’t freak out at the sight of a camera.

    I’m also sick of attending all sorts of events and museums where I’m told I’m not allowed to take pictures. I understand the banning of video at movies, concerts and theater plays, but what’s wrong with pictures? I wonder what kind of image record human kind will have of our current times with this heavy ban on pictures.

    Sometimes I want to start some website or campaign to tell people “don’t be afraid of the photographer.” Freaking bunch of indians, we’re not stealing anybody’s soul with our cameras. But I am too busy and lazy for that.

  12. Faxon says:

    I am a news phototgrapher. Malls have been nasty to me since way before 9/11. It has nothing to do with terrorism, and everything to do with keeping news crews away from their operations. Unfortunately, the courts have ruled that photographers like myself are allowed in, since the public is. If they have a sign prohibiting photography, however, you are out of luck. It did not use to be this way. It was considered a public place, but no longer.
    As for being told you can’t take pictures of kids in public, happily, nobody can tell you that. Anyone walking down the street or in a park has given up any presumption of privacy. That is the law. So far.
    Pictures of the Oakland Shipping Terminal is always fun, since they hate it, and there is absolutely nothing they can do about it. In New York City, however, the pinheads have actually made it illegal to photograph city hall. So anything can happen. All it takes is a stupid public official, and we know how many of those with which we have to put up.

  13. RTaylor says:

    The silent majority is destroying this nation my turning their heads. Thomas Jefferson would suggest another revolution.

  14. Dallas says:

    It is rather disgusting the police state mentality created during the Cheney administration.

    Many of these psycho cops are abusing this police state hysteria to feed their thirst for asserting power over average citizens instead of fighting real crime.

  15. Father says:

    The condition upon which God hath given liberty to man is eternal vigilance; which condition if he break, servitude is at once the consequence of his crime and the punishment of his guilt.” — John Philpot Curran

  16. Father says:

    Maybe we should have a law that all children in public should wear a body-hiding robe that only exposes their eyes.

  17. Houston says:

    #14 – What does Cheney have to do with it? I remember those in uniforms thinking they were gods long before the “Cheney administration”. If the “Cheney administration” is anything, it’s a symptom, not the cause. Instead of blaming the “Cheney administration”, you should ask yourself, “What is Obama doing about it?”. The answer is not a damn thing.

  18. brm says:

    Hey! Don’t take pics of my kid! Oh, strange man dressed as Santa? Sure, my kid can sit on your penis!

  19. Dallas says:

    #19 LOL.

  20. dusanmal says:

    @#5 “In these sensitive days, I should think everyone realizes you ought to get permission from the parents.” &
    @#14 “It is rather disgusting the police state mentality created during the Cheney administration. ”

    As you can see from #5 comment, Cheney doesn’t have anything to do with it. People need to “re-learn” that the public place is public place and you, by the law, have no presumption of privacy there. Nor does anyone, including the police have any legal rights to ban seeing/photographing whatever is in public eye. As much as Police State is part of this problem, people like overzealous parents are the equal-level abusers. In this particular case, problem have started by abusive parents bullying photographer who didn’t violate any laws, just “for the children”… (Sadly, he complied with their abusive requests and still got into the hands of Police State).

  21. coolismo says:

    frequency is the question ie how many shots taken, at what interval and of what subject ie was he snapping santa or the kids. if he’s snapping the same kid repeatedly then he’s being a nuisance and an intervention is ok to move him away. i’m a libetarian but anyone photoing my kid a dozen times for example is going to get my free will on the jaw.

  22. riker17 says:

    Aren’t the parents paying to have a picture of their child taken with Santa? I am thinking that the real reason that Mr. Rensberger was stopped was that he was taking the job of the lowly elf-girl. Just a thought.
    And, a revolution is badly needed now. America has gone bonkers!

  23. farbauti says:

    If the Prez can get a Nobel Peace prize for waging 2 wars, these guys probably think they should get a Christmas bonus for for a beat down.

  24. overtemp says:

    Coming soon: preemptive raids on camera stores.

  25. JimR says:

    Re: riker17 #13… bingo!

  26. JimR says:

    Okay, I’ll make it even easier for some of you…
    Peer reviewed scientific paper that destroys the hockey stick graph.

    http://uoguelph.ca/~rmckitri/research/MM03.pdf

  27. JimR says:

    oops… wrong thread. Sorry. 🙂

  28. FRAGaLOT says:

    It’s a trick, if you’re accused of something you obviously didn’t do, you’ll be quick to admit to what you actually did do, and then they gotcha!

    so making the accusation of battery may coax him into admitting that he took pictures. Even though when did taking pictures become a crime? Why is everyone so paranoid about pedophiles kidnapping kids?

  29. Faxon says:

    Want to know what is hilarious? Try taking a photograph inside of a camera store and see what happens.

  30. sargasso says:

    #30. or a bridge, airport, airplane, police station, shopping mall, naval station, barracks, school, Axl Rose, etc.


1

Bad Behavior has blocked 3389 access attempts in the last 7 days.