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The Texas Division of Public Security might launch a legal investigation in opposition to a broadcast information cameraman arrested at this week’s College of Texas at Austin demonstration, the company mentioned Friday. That announcement got here shortly after Travis County officers mentioned they dismissed misdemeanor legal trespass fees in opposition to all 57 people known to have been arrested on the protest.
The photojournalist for FOX 7 in Austin was among the many individuals arrested. He was masking the protest and legislation enforcement response, and identified himself only as “Carlos” to native media. Neither DPS nor the tv station have publicly named him.
In a press release Friday, DPS accused him of hitting a trooper along with his digital camera.
“The division believes strongly in a journalist’s proper to cowl occasions of the day in a secure manner; nevertheless, that doesn’t besides an individual from following the legislation or the principles which have been put in place for the security of others,” Sheridan Nolen, DPS press secretary, mentioned in a Friday assertion.
The company mentioned the matter has been referred to its legal investigations division for additional investigation.
Kevin McPherson, information director at FOX 7, mentioned the group was not capable of remark presently. However the station posted a duplicate of the DPS assertion on its web site.
A number of videos from the scene posted on the social media web site X present a crush of protesters, officers and journalists chaotically shifting throughout the campus’ South Garden as DPS troopers clear the world. It’s not clear who filmed the movies. A tv photojournalist, loaded with a big shoulder digital camera and backpack, could be seen close to the sting of a line of troopers pushing the group off the garden.
From a number of angles of the melee captured in a number of movies, together with one filmed by the journalist, it’s clear his digital camera collides with an officer in the course of the scuffle.
Video then reveals a trooper pulling the photojournalist’s backpack and, together with one other officer, throwing him to the bottom. Because the cameraman was being led away by a state trooper, he mentioned to KXAN that he informed legislation enforcement he was with the press. He additionally mentioned he was being pushed, however didn’t say who was pushing him.
“They had been pushing me and … they are saying I hit an officer,” he says in a video posted on X. “I didn’t hit an officer. They had been pushing. They had been pushing me.”
The creator of the submit didn’t reply to a request for remark from the Tribune.
Carlos’ digital camera continued rolling after he was slammed to the bottom.
“I used to be shifting, I used to be shifting,” Carlos could be heard saying on the footage from his camera. He defined that he was pushed and nearly fell.
The officer main him away mentioned, “I wasn’t there to see it.”
FOX 7 reported the photojournalist was booked in Travis County Jail after 8 p.m. on Wednesday and was launched earlier than midday on Thursday.
Travis County Lawyer Delia Garza announced on Friday that legislation enforcement lacked possible trigger within the 57 legal trespass instances stemming from Wednesday’s arrests. There had been no felony fees filed because of the demonstration as of late Thursday, in response to the Travis County district legal professional’s workplace
In a Thursday assertion, Kelley Shannon, govt director for the Freedom of Data Basis of Texas, mentioned that the photojournalist was charged with legal trespass, together with the protesters who had been arrested.
Shannon denounced the arrest and referred to as on legislation enforcement to respect the rights of free press.
“The police shouldn’t intervene with a working journalist doing his job masking the information in a public place,” Shannon mentioned.
Annie Xia contributed to this story.
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