Until today I hadn’t ever heard of First Amendment audits, but I quickly got immersed in the concept and watched a few dozen of them.

Wikipedia, in an article marked Neutrality Disputed, says: “First Amendment audits are a largely American social movement that usually involves photographing or filming a public space. It is often categorized by its practitioners, known as auditors, as activism and citizen journalism that tests constitutional rights … ”

Most of the audits involve interacting with cops, and many of the auditors seek to educate the officers on the constitutionality and legality (or lack thereof) of their own enforcement actions. The cops are frequently aware that they’re being tested and what the auditors are up to–once Alabama badgeholder initiated contact with his alleged perp by referring to him as a “first amendment frauditor”. Clearly the practice is not designed to make the LEOs happy.

I was very impressed by a lot of what I saw. Some of the auditors are very smooth and cool, and others are surly dicks, but they’re all doing something that benefits everybody, by insisting on exercising what’s left of the rights guaranteed to citizens by the Bill of Rights.

Sometimes they end up spending time in the slammer. Sometimes they win large settlements against the employers of ill-informed or simply bad cops.

Here are a couple of samples:

“HE SHOULD BE TRACKED!” OFFICER PLACES CITIZEN ON WATCHLIST

Supervisor Orders Officers To Leave Citizen Alone

Officer Wants To Arrest Good Samaritan

And, a not-really-audit story that dramatically demonstrates the inherent coldness of the system:
POLICE AND EMS ABANDON PATIENT

Most of what I watched came from a single channel, Audit the Audit. But he faithfully gives credit and links out to others in the movement, giving out letter grades with detailed explanations to both cop and auditor alike, and doing a further educational service. Fascinating. Recommended.