'First Amendment auditors' test DeLand law enforcement

In an attempt to thwart more potentially threatening situations, DeLand city officials have enacted a policy to prohibit videotaping of interactions between private citizens and public officers in the lobby of the DeLand Police Department.

The DeLand City Commission voted unanimously at last week's meeting in favor of a resolution to prevent audio and video recordings of individuals requesting records or reporting crimes to police. City spokesman Chris Graham said this type of surveillance has increased in recent months and that city staff had become concerned that the privacy of citizens could be compromised by so-called "First Amendment auditors" whose primary goal is to test constitutional rights, specifically the right to photograph and video record in public spaces ― a right protected by the First Amendment.

Not only can this be bothersome to public employees but it can lead to contentious clashes between citizens and activists. In one case last week, a resident pushed a man with a camera down in the lobby of the DeLand Police Department, according to Graham.

"It's these sorts of interactions we want to avoid," Graham said.

DeLand mayor: The right thing to do

The group typically operates in public spaces, photographing or filming from locations like sidewalks, public right-of-ways, or areas open to the public such as post offices, police stations, school campuses and government buildings. Sometimes, these interactions ― in many cases, filmed right from people's cell phones ― are posted to social media for viewing.

DeLand Mayor Chris Cloudman said he believed implementing the policy was proactively the right thing to do.

"It [a police building] should be a safe place where someone can go and share information . ... especially if they are a victim of a sexual assault," Cloudman said.

City Attorney Darren Elkind told commissioners Monday that, while the law does allow for the recording of public employees servicing private citizens in public spaces, "We believe there is also some expectation of privacy when they are dealing with public employees, including if people are reporting crimes of a sensitive nature."

'This is a really, really, really bad idea'

But Bobby Block, executive director for the Florida First Amendment Foundation based in Tallahassee, disagrees with this argument, saying that someone speaking most likely into a microphone through a bullet-proof window in the reception area of a police station does not constitute confidentiality.

"And even if it did, it wouldn't trump the First Amendment," Block said.

After reviewing the text of the DeLand ordinance, Block added, "This is a really, really, really bad idea. ... On its face, it is unconstitutional."

DeLand Police Chief Jason Umberger said it is routine for people to make an initial contact with law enforcement at the front window of the lobby to explain what they are there for. If the action is personal or sensitive in nature, Umberger said, police will then take an individual to a private room (where no filming is allowed) to deal with the issue in more detail.

'This is to protect citizens'

The concern, however, Elkind said, is that "in some cases, maybe an individual shows up bloodied after being accosted" and that interaction could be captured on camera.

"This is to protect citizens," Elkind added.

City commissioner Jessica Davis said she was curious how often these kinds of interactions happened. Elkind said they have been going on nationally over the last five years or so but only in the last few months in DeLand.

"I agree that people should have a right to be anonymous ... and not have a camera rolling at all times," Davis said.

Fellow city commissioner Kevin Reed echoed that there should be an "expectation of privacy" in such encounters.

While some view these audits as a valuable form of activism, critics argue that they can be confrontational and sometimes intimidating, even a form of passive agitation.

In February 2023, Daytona Beach and Ormond Beach were targeted with antisemitic literature. The group responsible for this action was dubbed “First Amendment auditors” by Daytona Beach Police Chief Jakari Young who, along with Ormond Beach Police Chief Jesse Godfrey, denounced the behavior. In addition, the activists were seen distributing hate fliers from the top of a pedestrian bridge over International Speedway Boulevard.

"Their goal is for us to take the bait so we can do something that violates their rights and so they can sue the city," Young told The Daytona Beach News-Journal at the time.

Danielle Johnson, a spokesperson for the Volusia County School District, said the district had experienced a run-in in a public building in January in which an individual complained about being recorded relaying information in a school lobby. Johnson said the district has since added signage to mark which areas are private and which are public.

This article originally appeared on St. Augustine Record: 'First Amendment auditors' put on alert by DeLand city officials