As the protests that have begun since the controversial death of George Floyd continues to rage on, a CNN crew that were reporting the situation in Minneapolis was arrested by police forces on live television.
The crew had been covering the situation in the heart of the protest, not far from the exact spot where the arrest that eventually led to the death of George Floyd took place. CNN correspondent Omar Jimenez was reporting the situation when the police force approached them.
One crew member later explained to the network that the police said they were arresting the crew because they did not comply with their orders to relocate and move. However, this explanation does not seem to accurately describe the situation that has been filmed on camera.
5:09am local time, Jimenez was reporting near the police precinct that has been burned down because of the protestors. As they filmed a protestor getting arrested, the police approached Jimenez and the crew and asked them to move.
After identifying himself and his crew as press members, Jimenez very clearly tells the police that they are on air right now, and that they will move to where the police want them to be at. He repeated his compliance twice more, saying if the police let them know where they want his crew to be, he will move.
2 minutes later, two officers approached Jimenez and said that he was under arrest. After being handcuffed, he was led away by the officers – which was also caught on camera. Soon, the remaining three members were also put under arrest and only then was the camera taken away from them.
Former police chief Charles Ramsey told CNN that the arrest does not make sense to him. Not only did Jimenez calmly identify himself and his crew with a verified press badge, they also showed willingness to follow the orders from the police.
The network quickly announced via its official Twitter account that the arrest was a violation of the first amendment, as Jimenez and his crew were just doing their jobs as reporters. CNN called for a quick release of all their crew.
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Replaced!