Photographers stage protest over Silver Spring dispute
From DC Examiner:
“More than 100 photographers and supporters used Independence Day to protest what they called the recent infringement on the freedom of a local shutterbug to take pictures at a Silver Spring development built with taxpayer help.
Chip Py, whose recent run-in with private security guards was the focus of the event, said the rally was aimed at confirming the First Amendment rights of photographers and others on property developed by public-private partnerships.
The conflict began June 12, when Py says a security guard told him he wasn’t allowed to take photos on the redeveloped Ellsworth Drive property. Py objected, citing the use of more than $100 million in taxpayer dollars to help redevelop the area and its status as a public-private partnership. Management ultimately allowed him to take the photos, but Py said he was concerned that he was stopped in the first place.
“Our rights to take photos in a public place don’t come from any company,” Py said. “They come from the Constitution.”