“The whole world is watching” echoed across Chicago in 1968. Under the existing Illinois Eavesdropping law, ruled unconstitutional by Judge Stanley Sacks last week, the world could watch, but it couldn’t listen.
Chicagotalks has documented Art Activist Chris Drew’s arrest for recording his own arrest with an audio recorder, and his subsequent indictment on felony charges that carry up to a 15 year prison sentence.
You can watch Chicago Police Superintendent Garry F. McCarthy, Lucy Dalglish, Executive Director at the Reporter’s Committee for Freedom of the Press, and Harvey Grossman, Legal Director at the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) Illinois discuss the problems this law presents in the age of mobile phones, social media, and the Arab Spring, with moderator Don Wycliff on Chicagotalks.org
Nancy Bechtol was at court with Drew recently, prior to Judge Sacks’ ruling, but Drew was upbeat at the time, and so were his supporters.
We have covered Chris Drew’s initial efforts to question the municipal peddling codes, that spiraled into his being arrested for recording his own arrest and the felony charges since he was initially arrested, here are links to some of our stories:
- Local Artist Stands Up for Rights, Might Go to Jail
- Artists Brave Cold for Free Speech
- Chris Drew discusses his arrest in June, 2010
- Smart Phone Use a Threat to Your Freedom in Illinois
Here are links to how the news of Judge Sacks ruling was playing out in cyberspace.
http://storify.com/drbarb/in-chris-drew-s-trial-illinois-eavesdropping-law-i
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