Charges laid after Winnipeg street blocked off for hours
Thursday, December 13th, 2007
CBC News
Last Updated: Thursday, December 13, 2007 | 2:05 PM CT
…
A CBC cameraman in the area was arrested and charged by police just as the situation on Murray Avenue was getting underway.
CBC reporters were in the same area following a different story.
When police began arriving, the cameraman began rolling. Police instructed him to turn off the camera, then moved in, said CBC reporter Gosia Sawicka.
“The officer started driving towards us in his cruiser, and then he got out, confiscated the camera, and before I knew it, my cameraman was … in the back of a cruiser,” Sawicka said.
Several hours later, the cameraman was formally charged with obstructing a peace officer and released.
CBC regional director John Bertrand said he had concerns about the incident.
“By all accounts, the CBC staff that were involved in this were acting completely appropriately,” he said.
“They were on public property, in essence a street, shooting an event that was public activity. They were doing nothing, that I can see, that was improper or illegal.”