"Your First Amendment rights can be terminated"

Police Handcuff NBC Chicago Photojournalist

Chicago police took two members of the media into custody Saturday, including an NBC Chicago photographer.

Photographer Donte Williams and WGN Reporter Dan Ponce were detained as they attempted to cover the story of a 6-year-old girl who was shot and killed. Crews were standing on a sidewalk outside Mt. Sinai Hospital, where the girl had been taken.

The hospital apparently called police, complaining of trespassers. The news crews, at the request of police officers, said they had already moved from a public sidewalk directly in front of the hospital, to a median halfway across the street.

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Police held Williams and Ponce for about 10 minutes. The officer who handcuffed them is recorded on camera warning members of the media that their First Amendment rights could be terminated.

"Your First Amendment rights can be terminated if you're creating a scene or whatever," the officer said.

When asked how they were creating a scene, the officer said, "Your presence is creating a scene."

Source: https://www.nbcchicago.com/news/loca...#ixzz1psCIKquu