It looks like the Cumberland County District Attorney has done the right thing:
“When police are audio- and video-recording traffic stops with notice to the subjects, similar actions by citizens, even if done in secret, will not result in criminal charges,” Freed said yesterday. “I intend to communicate this decision to all police agencies within the county so that officers on the street are better-prepared to handle a similar situation should it arise again.”
Excellent.
The only time I can accept them not letting a civilian record a police officer, is if the circumstances are such that it can impact a case or a person’s safety. For instance, if an undercover officer is recorded in such a manner that it could damage his cover. Otherwise, I feel that the public should be free to record the police, since they are recording us all the time with security cameras.