Woman Thrown In Jail For Legally Recording Traffic Stop

Mikael Thalen storyleak.com A Florida woman spent the night in jail this week after attempting to document her own police encounter. The woman, Brandy Berning, was pulled over by Broward Sheriff Deputy William O’Brien after driving in the carpool lane on Interstate 95. Berning immediately pulled out her cellphone and began audio recording the encounter, informing O’Brien several moments after he arrived to her driver side door. “Oh, I forgot to tell you I was recording our conversation,” Berning says. Although Florida currently has a two-party consent law, which dictates that both parties must consent to being recorded, the supreme court has upheld that police officers do not have an expectation of privacy while working in public, therefore can be recorded without prior approval. “Ok, well I have to tell you that you’ve just committed a felony,” O’Brien says. Confused at the false claim, Berning barely has time to react as the deputy begins demanding the phone, now heading towards the passenger side door. “You are committing a felony. Hand me the phone,” O’Brien says. Berning can be heard demanding O’Brien leave her vehicle as the deputy climbs in and begins physically attempting to take the device. “I know the law better than you, believe me,” O’Brien says as Berning refuses to comply. By the end of the altercation, Berning is arrested and dragged to O’Brien’s police car, left with scrapes, bruises and a strained wrist. Despite the deputy continually claiming her actions were illegal, Berning was only charged with resisting arrest and minor traffic violations, leading many to believe O’Brien knowingly violated her First Amendment. After being forced to spend the night in jail, all of Berning’s charges were quietly dropped, giving more credibility to the idea that O’Brien’s only goal was illegal intimidation. Berning has now filed suit against the Broward Sheriff’s Department. to read more: storyleak.com