Use-Case Playbook: What to Do If You Witness a Constitutional Rights Violation
Overview
You witnessed law enforcement violating someone’s rights — excessive force, an unlawful arrest, an illegal search, suppression of protected speech or assembly, or a violation of due process. This playbook walks through what to do from the moment of witnessing through reporting and potential legal proceedings.
Emergency Reference
Right now: Record from a safe distance. Do not interfere physically. Keep the camera steady.
After recording:
- Send the video to cloud storage or text it to someone not present
- Write down everything immediately while memory is fresh
- Do not post publicly before consulting a lawyer for the victim
If officer orders you to stop recording: “I have a First Amendment right to record police in public.” Continue recording unless you are physically arrested.
Step 1: Your Right to Record
Read: What to Do When You Witness a Constitutional Rights Violation (Part I: Your Right to Record)
Your First Amendment right to record police in public is affirmed in every US circuit court. You cannot be lawfully ordered to stop recording in a public space. The document covers:
- The legal basis (circuit court cases)
- Where you can and cannot record
- What to do if an officer orders you to stop
- What to do if officers try to take your phone
Step 2: How to Record Effectively
Read: What to Do When You Witness a Constitutional Rights Violation (Part II: How to Record Effectively)
Practical recording guidance:
- What to capture (officer badge numbers, use of force, crowd context)
- How to secure the recording immediately (cloud upload, text to trusted person)
- The ACLU Mobile Justice app (uploads directly to ACLU servers when stopped)
- Creating metadata-verified evidence (SHA-256 hashing for legal proceedings)
Step 3: Evidence Preservation Standards
Read: Methodology — Evidence Preservation
If your recording may be used in legal proceedings, follow professional evidence preservation standards:
- Do not edit, crop, or filter the original file
- Preserve the original file with original metadata
- Create and record a SHA-256 hash of the original file
- Store copies in multiple locations
Step 4: Web Archiving and Document Preservation
Read: Tutorial — Web archiving for evidence preservation
If the incident has been reported online, in police reports, or in social media — archive those pages before they are deleted:
- Submit URLs to archive.org/save immediately
- Use archive.today for a secondary backup
- Download and hash any documents
Step 5: Video Verification Standards
Read: Tutorial — Video verification checklist
If you are documenting for legal proceedings or public reporting, verify:
- Device timestamp and timezone
- Location metadata if available
- Chain of custody from recording to submission
- No evidence of editing or manipulation
Step 6: Written Documentation
Write down everything immediately after the incident — do not wait.
Include:
- Date, time, exact location (GPS coordinates if possible)
- Specific agency and officer descriptions (badge number, uniform markings, vehicle number)
- Exact words used and commands given
- Sequence of events
- Visible injuries before and after the encounter
- Names and contact information of other witnesses
- Your own position during the recording
Step 7: Report to the Right Channels
Read: What to Do When You Witness a Constitutional Rights Violation (Part V: Reporting Rights Violations)
Reporting channels by agency type:
- Local police: Internal Affairs or Civilian Police Review Board
- State AG: For pattern-of-conduct violations
- DOJ Civil Rights Division: justice.gov/crt
- FBI OIG: For FBI agent misconduct
- DHS Office for Civil Rights: dhs.gov/ocr (ICE, CBP, TSA)
Civil rights organizations:
- ACLU state affiliate (intake forms online)
- National Lawyers Guild
- NAACP Legal Defense Fund (for racially motivated violations)
Step 8: Legal Observer Programs
Read: What to Do When You Witness a Constitutional Rights Violation (Part IV: Legal Observer Programs)
If you want to do this systematically, consider becoming a legal observer:
- NLG legal observers (Green Hats) document arrests at demonstrations
- Training available through nlg.org/legal-observer-trainings
- Legal observers provide formal witness statements for legal proceedings