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Conservative Group Makes Public Records Request for Protest Video…Told It Will Cost Them $20K

Mar. 15, 2013 1:26pm Liz Klimas

Remember the right-to-work protests in Michigan late last year that felled a tent hosted by the conservative group Americans for Prosperity and damaged the personal property of others? Now the same group is seeking to obtain video of the incident from law enforcement, but is being told it will cost them nearly $20,000.

“You can’t put a price tag on the public’s right to know,” Scott Hagerstrom, state director of Americans for Prosperity-Michigan, said in a statement. “Transparency is our best means to stem corruption and boost public confidence in those government servants who took an oath to serve and protect.”

Americans for Prosperity Asks Michigan State Police to Waive Fee for Right to Work Protest Videos

Screenshot of a YouTube video of the Americans for Prosperity’s tent being torn down by protesters Dec. 11, 2013, in Lansing, Michigan.

According to AFP-Michigan’s press release, through the Freedom of Information Act it requested videotaped material of the protests that it believed was held by the Michigan State Police. The FOIA was filed in Dec. 21 and the police asked for extra time to respond until Jan. 4. This extension was followed by AFP receiving a notice Jan. 18 that said to access the video it would cost them $19,602.52 in fees. To search, retrieve, review, sift through records and separate materials that might be exempt, the police stated to AFP, would cost $19,573.92 in employee labor alone.

With this fee, AFP-Michigan responded to state police asking that the fee be waived. The letter sent this month says that while AFP understands there is a cost associated with retrieving such information, it believes the fee should be waived because the information would benefit the general public:

While the public has been made aware that violence, property damage, and destruction took place they do not have a complete understanding of the events that transpired. The videotaped material in possession of the Michigan State Police would significantly add to the public’s understanding of the events of December 11, 2012. Upon receipt of the requested records AFP intends to make the material available to the public and the news media to provide a more complete understanding of the events of December 11, 2012.

nion members from around the country rally at the Michigan State Capitol to protest a vote on Right-to-Work legislation December 11, 2012 in Lansing, Michigan. The new law that was passed makes requiring financial support of a union as a condition of employment illegal. (Photo: Bill Pugliano/Getty Images)

“Instead of a safe haven for civil public discourse, they were met with violence, threats of violence and destruction of personal property,” Hagerstrom said in a statement. “We will not allow their speech to be chilled. We will continue to endeavor to better understand what happened that day. By understanding we can ensure that such blatant disregard for first amendment rights will not be allowed to happen again.”

Michigan State Police Spokeswoman Shanon Banner explained to MLive.com that the cost for obtaining the footage might seem high, but there is more than 400 hours of footage from 23 cameras in the area that would need to be reviewed.

Michigan State Police in riot gear stand with batons at-the-ready while protestors linked arms and blocked a street during a rally at the Michigan State Capitol to protest a vote on Right-to-Work legislation. (Photo: Bill Pugliano/Getty Images)

“We suggested if they were looking for specific information they could narrow their request (and therefore the cost) by requesting either certain areas of the Capitol or certain time frames, but they indicated to us they were not interested in narrowing the request,” Banner said in the e-mail to MLive.com.

Watch this spectator footage of the tent being torn down (Content warning: strong language):

Here’s some video from YouTube of the tent being torn apart after it was downed:

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Comments (56)

FedUpMan
Posted on March 15, 2013 at 3:50pm
I assume from now on the D’s will be charged the same $20k RIGHT for ALL their requests.

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- DeniseJ
  Posted on March 15, 2013 at 9:10pm
  Well, those police are Unionized, are they not??? Guess they want any conservatives that oppose their agenda to pay for their police pensions!!!
  
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- redfish52
  Posted on March 16, 2013 at 9:34am
  Good Conservative Patriots of Michigan….the police will need to be your first targets when the time comes…they will be the Progressives first line of defense. Take them out first.
  
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- G-WHIZ
  Posted on March 16, 2013 at 9:54am
  …and B.Klinton sold the [nites-in-Lincoln-Bedroom] to “special” doners… .
  
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- naughtycal
  Posted on March 18, 2013 at 8:39am
  20,000? To do the job THE PUBLIC IS ALREADY PAYIN G THEM TO DO!!!!
  WTF the group should file a warrantsd against whomever is trying this for extortion!!
  We pay them to do this job and nbow they want to extort citizens the intell they collected whiler DOING THEIR JOB!
  
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TheSerpentsSeed
Posted on March 15, 2013 at 3:50pm
When are we going to start doing something about this? We have to step up. They already are the authority. Cops belong to the most powerful unions in the world. Its time to get active. Phone calls, emails, start lighting fires under OUR EMPLOYEES. Lets get our money’s worth. Time to fight fire with fire. Enough talk.

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Nuclear Bumpkin
Posted on March 15, 2013 at 3:46pm
“To search, retrieve, review, sift through records and separate materials that might be exempt, the police stated to AFP, would cost $19,573.92 in employee labor alone.”

Fire whatever idiot you’re overpaying and hire someone competent, then.

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- hebashen
  Posted on March 15, 2013 at 4:33pm
  I’d do it for free.
  
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marybethelizabeth
Posted on March 15, 2013 at 3:29pm
The reason Republicans can’t get anything done is because they are too cheap. They won’t pay for anything.

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- pragmaticpatriot
  Posted on March 15, 2013 at 4:59pm
  Refusing extortion and bribery isnt being cheap! Democrats/ liberals/ progressives are different species of the same communist snake, cold blooded, injecting venom for a meal and give nothing back to society but shed skin and poop. The trolls are out in force today fellas
  
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- Pillar of Fire
  Posted on March 15, 2013 at 6:04pm
  BRAVO-SIERRA! We have already payed for all of the emperor’s golf games & clothes, too. Even though he doesn’t fill out a suit very well…guess it’s the scales…
  
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- geeman
  Posted on March 17, 2013 at 3:22pm
  M.B.E. Your commie tax thugs have taken all the money,republicans are cheap because they work hard for their money.Libs just stick their hands out and cry about rich people.Get a job obamatron!
  
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igetit
Posted on March 15, 2013 at 3:25pm
Michigan–home of The Raid at Bridgman on August 22, 1922. Know your history! These are Communists. It has been bred into them by a few generations now.

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Ghandi was a Republican
Posted on March 15, 2013 at 2:25pm
A demand should be put in for the immediate termination of whoever can’t get a video clip and release it for the nominal sum of $5. At most that’s the man hours equivalent it would take to download it, and/or post it on their website for all to see. It was requested under foia after all.
$5! Anything more should be docked from the pay of whoever is in charge. Then fire them.

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- neidermeyer
  Posted on March 15, 2013 at 2:51pm
  The Occupy WallStreet people had numerous charges dropped completely based on police video footage that contradicted official reports and charges … I’m pretty sure that the film/video was turned over for a nominal fee (should be statutory) … This is just Union THUG antics ,, this time the thugs are the police.
  
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PASSIONFORCHRIST
Posted on March 15, 2013 at 2:13pm
Show the footage they have now. It shows the UNION THUGS making the mess and destroying property!

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The-Monk
Posted on March 15, 2013 at 2:10pm
How did the Michigan State Police get footage of this? Were they filming it or did they take people’s videos away from them? Do they have footage from tax payer paid for surveillance cameras?

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- blownaway
  Posted on March 15, 2013 at 10:58pm
  Look up, there are cameras everywhere these days…
  
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trigger
Posted on March 15, 2013 at 1:59pm
unions have gone the way of the telegraph.

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- gyro
  Posted on March 15, 2013 at 2:07pm
  this — -… .- — .- / .. … / –. — .. -. –. / – — / -… . -.-. — — . / ..-. .. .-. … – / .–. .-. . … .. -.. . -. – / – — / .-. ..- -. / …– / – ..- .-. — …
  
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- C.Gallicchio
  Posted on March 15, 2013 at 10:19pm
  Gyro – Too funny :)
  
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tramco
Posted on March 15, 2013 at 1:58pm
They should FOIA request how many other groups made similar requests and were not charged.

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Budrow
Posted on March 15, 2013 at 1:49pm
The Michigan State Police are stone-walling for some reason. They must have something to hide or they are as greedy as the Mayor(s) that brought down Detroit with their theft and graft and dishonesty and greed.
The videos could be copied in their entirety with a couple of hours of labor and a few CD’s. Total cost shouldn’t exceed $200.00, and that’s being generous to the thieving bashtards.

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- zorro
  Posted on March 15, 2013 at 2:26pm
  Aren’t cops unionized also? I believe the law affected them directly. So yeah, they’re just as bad as the folks on the video.
  
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- pragmaticpatriot
  Posted on March 15, 2013 at 5:00pm
  They are controlled by the unions too, bought and paid for.
  
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SGT Rock
Posted on March 15, 2013 at 1:45pm
The thin Union line my freinds must not be violated. Other words they are gonna bleed you dry just like frivolous laws suits do. They have created the rules so they can tell you what to do, time to make your own rules.

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Snowleopard {gallery of cat folks}
Posted on March 15, 2013 at 1:45pm
And so the conservatives are pushed around again, denied public information while if they had been a liberal group the tapes would have been handed out en mass.

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- CatB
  Posted on March 15, 2013 at 1:49pm
  Michigan state (police) union … yes SNOW .. they are also strapped for cash and giving out tickets for 2 over the speed limit … where there are unions there is fraud, waste, and abuse.
  
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mrunner
Posted on March 15, 2013 at 1:43pm
I don’t get it. Public funds to use public cameras in a public place. What can they possible be reviewing? None of this should need editing or review- just duplication and distribution.

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- MDECKER
  Posted on March 15, 2013 at 2:10pm
  Exactly! I’d also be curious as to whether the SEIU has already gained a copy of the video. These sorts of videos are used for training purposes for law enforcement and for unions as well.
  
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jackact
Posted on March 15, 2013 at 1:41pm
Conservatives may be out $20K for a video but the real loser are the municipal unions in this true blue state.
Its only going to get worse for them too.
:)

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Ironmaan
Posted on March 15, 2013 at 1:41pm
And now the union thugs must live in the Detroit cesspool they have created.

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nonofmybiznez
Posted on March 15, 2013 at 1:40pm
If the video is part of a potential lawsuit, they should be able to get it for free.

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- DimmuBorgir
  Posted on March 15, 2013 at 1:47pm
  So they want $20K to go through to “select” what they want to be shown.
  
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STREBOR
Posted on March 15, 2013 at 1:39pm
We have the best government money can buy!

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YesLiberalsAreThatDumb
Posted on March 15, 2013 at 1:39pm
And the libs still think we are free… well I HOPE THEY ENJOY THEIR STARVATION!

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RLTW
Posted on March 15, 2013 at 1:36pm
Can anyone say moral cowardice?

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team1blazer
Posted on March 15, 2013 at 1:33pm
My question is simple….WHY does it need to be “reviewed”? So that you can censor it?… Horse Cookies! Release ALL of the video NOW!!! The video is available…make it public. If you are not willing to make ALL of the video public, you have something to hide.

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naughtycal
Posted on March 15, 2013 at 1:33pm
20,000? To do the job THE PUBLIC IS ALREADY PAYIN G THEM TO DO!!!!
WTF the group should file a warrantsd against whomever is trying this for extortion!!
We pay them to do this job and nbow they want to extort citizens the intell they collected whiler DOING THEIR JOB!

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RoDogg
Posted on March 15, 2013 at 1:32pm
Union thugs protecting union thugs….period

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woodyee
Posted on March 15, 2013 at 1:31pm
I hope they win the case – and probably will. Then they can use the evidence against those f’dup union thugs, and hopefully it’ll be discovered that the local DemonicRat Party Committee gave them instructions to be destructive, and they’ll be able to sue those bass terds, too.

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- RJJinGadsden
  Posted on March 15, 2013 at 1:40pm
  WOODYEE, I’ve been involved in a couple of FOIA requests. We had to photocopy the files, then redact names and SSNs, along with other personal info that could not be released. Since the print showed through the magic marker used, we had to then photocopy the copies to make the print disappear. This took several days both times. And, nobody was charged a penny. What gives here?
  
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Jgilman
Posted on March 15, 2013 at 1:31pm
They are effing public servants, they already get their damn fee!

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