NYPD Officer's Arrest Brings Recording Of Cops Into Focus

NEW YORK (CBSNewYork/AP) -- Charges against a New York City police officer accused of arresting a man for filming him with a cell phone camera have drawn fresh attention to a decades-old issue: citizens' rights to record police.

Officer Jonathan Munoz is charged with official misconduct in connection with the arrest of Jason Disisto in March, 2014. Munoz pleaded not guilty earlier this week.

Disisto filed a lawsuit against the NYPD last summer over the arrest. The 21-year-old alleged the department customarily makes retaliatory arrests of people who record police activity.

A police spokeswoman said that officers are reminded that people can record police interactions.

A New York Civil Liberties Union lawyer says court fights over the issue have erupted periodically since the 1970s.

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