NYCLU Hails Decision By NYPD To Abandon Proposed Subway Camera Ban

The NYCLU hailed today’s disclosure that the New York City Police Department has withdrawn its request for a ban on all photography in the New York City subway system. This report confirms what the NYCLU learned last week from the NYPD. Since the proposed ban was announced last year, the NYCLU has been working actively with the NYPD and with the MTA to oppose the ban.

NYCLU Associate Legal Director Christopher Dunn, who submitted comments to the ban and has been working with the NYPD, praised the disclosure: “As the NYPD itself has recognized, the subways can remain safe without infringing on the First Amendment. The police can and should investigate suspicious activity, and law-abiding people can and should be free to photograph life underground.”

NYCLU Executive Director Donna Lieberman said, “We are pleased that the NYPD has pulled back as we requested. Since 9/11, civil liberties too often have been trampled in the name of terrorism. As the NYPD has recognized here, civil liberties and public safety are not incompatible.”

Click here to read the NYCLU’s formal comments opposing the ban.