FC: Massachusetts high court rules against man who taped abusive cops

[Declan McCullagh]

This is a fascinating case. The majority said that unless they ruled as 
they did, "every police encounter would be available for secret recording." 
(As if anything was wrong with that.) Welcome to the latest conflict 
between technology and the law.

Technology will win this footrace, at least in the long run. As recording 
devices fall in price and size, they'll become increasingly commonplace. 
Perhaps a next-generation privacy company will build a device that streams 
its recording to a remote site wirelessly, so even if it's smashed by 
police or lawbreakers, its data will survive. Or perhaps a next-generation 
justicefiles.org will allow victims of police brutality to anonymously post 
their recordings of police misconduct next to other information about that 
particular law enforcement officer.

At Defcon this weekend, I asked a group of four or five law enforcement 
officials what they thought about the idea of having shouldercams that 
they'd be required to wear when they interrogate suspects or conduct 
interviews or perform other official duties. The recordings would be 
released after five years or when the trial was over and appeals exhausted. 
Needless to say, they weren't very receptive to the idea.

-Declan

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