By Tara Golenberke and Katelynn Cole
When the Ohio State Highway Patrol began videotaping at Mill Fest for training purposes, rumors began flying that police used private videos to bust people for underage drinking and other crimes.
“The police cannot do that. It’s a violation of our rights,” said Josh Couper, a senior studying photojournalism. “If that’s true, it’s an outrage.”
Although the ones videotaping were state troopers learning how to take part in patrolling a fest for the first time, it is true that photos and videos are taken by the police to use asinvestigative tools for crimes committed at the fests. In fact, Athens Police Chief Tom Pyle said some of the photos of Palmerfest printed in The Post last year were photos that the Athens Police Department had taken themselves.
“The photos were just documentation that went along with the officer’s testimony who took the photos,” Pyle said. “He witnessed crimes taking place and snapped the pictures.”
At last year’s Palmerfest, partygoers dragged a couch into the middle of the road and lit it on fire. The conflagration growing so large that the fire department had to intervene and extinguish the flames. Throughout the sortie, police snapped photos, which were later used as evidence against the people who participated in the chaos.
“We had one fella last year at Palmerfest try to say he was pushing the couch out of the way, but the officers who took the photo testified that they witnessed him drag the couch into the street and light it on fire. Then, we provided other pictures that we had not published showing those acts in progress,” Pyle said.
The police can also reference photos and videos from Facebook and YouTube, published by anyone, as investigative tools. Students have been warned about the dangers of posting photosand videos that could get them in trouble with future employers or law enforcement, but they still continue to post material making them vulnerable and an easy target. However, Pyle said, the police only use Facebook or YouTube when the police are tipped off about certain photos or videos, and it’s usually only for serious crimes.
“I just feel like if they don’t catch people drinking underage or doing whatever it is they shouldn’t be doing while they are there watching them, then they shouldn’t be allowed to punish them later,” Couper said. “Maybe I’m wrong about what is my right and what isn’t, but it feels unconstitutional.”
Although the public records office in the Athens Police Department could not recall any videos being taken at Mill Fest, when asked if the police ever videotape the fests for their own purposes, Pyle said “they do videotape sometimes for documentation of police actions for whatever future need might pop up, like a lawsuit, a case that needs investigated or just about any purpose one could think of.”
But the only real confirmation of any videotaping at this year’s Mill Fest is from the highway patrol.
“The highway patrol did videotape but as I understand, this was for their own training purposes as this was their first-time direct involvement with the fests,” Athens City Councilwoman Chris Knisely said.
However, Jason Merkle, a junior studying criminology, said he noticed security cameras being installed on telephone or light poles a few days before Palmerfest this year.
After talking with Athens police and City Council, no one has claimed the cameras that have appeared next to the streetlights on Palmer Street.
It’s the popularity of the fests that creates this need for the police to become tech savvy by taking photos or videos to enforce their testimonies.
“Using a photo to corroborate an officer’s eyewitness account is the only reliable use of photographic evidence,” Pyle said.
As a criminology student, Merkle said the use of photos and videos as investigative tools for crimes committed at fests can be fair yet unfair in certain aspects.
“The police are there to make sure everyone gets home safe and if someone gets mugged for instance and the person gets away with it, the use of photos and videos can be a very useful tool. But if the police are just using photos and videos to try and catch kids for things like open container, I think that is unfair.”
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