Watch Ferguson police tear gas a news crew and shut down their camera

(Image credit: Screenshot/Youtube)

last updated 8 January 2015

My colleague Jon Terbush previously reported on how last night, Ferguson police repeatedly shot tear gas at fleeing protestors. But they weren't the only ones getting gassed.

In a shocking video from KSDK-TV, police shoot a tear gas canister at a completely peaceful Al-Jazeera America crew, who then run for cover. A few minutes later, a police truck bearing the name "St. Charles County Regional SWAT" approaches, and police take down the Al-Jazeera setup, pulling down their lights and pointing their camera at the ground. Watch the first part here:

That video stops before the police take down the camera, but you can watch the rest here.

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What happened next, according to the KSDK account:

From there, the KSDK crew says police approached them with "guns drawn." Matthews says she and one photojournalist were in the SUV with their hands up and the third member of their crew got down on his knees in front of the SUV and raised his hand — telling police he was with the press.

Matthews says police told them they received a call that members of the media were in danger and in need of assistance. All three members of the KSDK crew say they were never in danger and never asked for assistance.

It should be noted that filming in a public place is a constitutionally protected right.

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Ryan Cooper is a national correspondent at TheWeek.com. His work has appeared in the Washington Monthly, The New Republic, and the Washington Post.