and, being "suspicious" is not a crime.
and, being "suspicious" is not a crime.
I have plans to photograph a Colonial Revival post office in my neighbourhood that's on the National Register of Historic Places. I intend to tell the postmaster/mistress in advance what I'm doing and that I'll be showing up with an 8x10 camera. Can't think of a reason why I wouldn't tell them. Besides, being neighbourly will help when I get to step #2, which is arranging to photograph a 1940 New Deal mural inside the building. It appears that there isn't a single decent photograph of this mural, which I would like to correct.
After 9/11 it became unlawful to photograph military installations, government buildings, bridges, etc. I don't know if they are still enforcing this, but they did for several years.
Jim, that was the "UNITING AND STRENGTHENING AMERICA BY PROVIDING APPROPRIATE TOOLS REQUIRED TO INTERCEPT AND OBSTRUCT TERRORISM (USA PATRIOT ACT) ACT OF 2001", which has expired. It was intended to address surveillance capabilities to detect terrorism rather than to terrorize citizens conducting non-terroristic activities. Some folks, law enforcement included, may think that the "law" persists. NOTE: this is not a political statement, but a statement-of-fact.
This might be true but there are still some government facilities where they don't like people photographing. From personal experience I was asked to stop photographing the a facade with large statues in front of the court house ( I think the PO Annex is there as well ) not recently but 3 years ago .. im guessing if I had a Dslr and looked like a tourist it wouldn't have mattered ..
Hmm. I've been accused of being a FBI spy for photographing down the highway from a Utah polygamist colony, and once by an anti-Govt rancher, but have never been harassed by the actual Govt itself. Funny... just a few days ago I was looking as the actual framed watercolor studies my Aunt made in advance of her fresco murals in THE Post Office during WPA days - the official headquarters in DC, the National P.O. But where I came from, nearly the entire town including the Post Office was blown up when a logging truck swerved and hit the gas pumps in front of the store; no act of terrorism needed. The mail was delivered by our neighbor a mile away, who was also the Constable, but mainly a cattle rancher and scrap metal dealer/hoarder.
Here's some reading on the subject: https://www.aclusocal.org/en/photogr...free%20society.
IDK when an armed federal policeman asks me to stop doing something I will comply whether its "lawful" or not.
Im not one of those obnoxious people who purposefully bothers security guards, police, TSA &c and then writes about it on my blog or Facebook, you tube video &c to create outrage. To be honest it wasn't that important for me to photograph the building, it's a nice building ... it's not going anywhere ( and hopefully neither am I ) and I'll do it when they raze the site. ... besides I'm sure if they did some sort of "check " on me they'd have seen I've had a high level fbi security clearance. I'll leave the fabricated outrage histrionics, and political statements to someone else and move on. LOL... I've got better things to do (hopefully)...
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