Dallas County Deputy Being Sued: Live Streams Traffic Stop

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Most of us are all too familiar with citizens recording police officers while they're doing their jobs.  We've seen too many videos of traffic stops, arrests, and officer-involved fights recorded by a bystander.

Is it Legal to Record a Police Officer?

According to Texas Criminal Defense Group:

In Texas and other states, it is legal to film, photograph, or otherwise, record anything that can be seen in a public place. This is a constitutional right, and it is very important in a free society. Those who are out in public, whether they are a police officer or a member of the public, do not have a reasonable expectation that anything they do or say is private.

It is important to note that while it is legal to take recordings of police and others in a public place, police officers may ask those who are recording to step away from the scene if they feel that person is interfering with police business. In cases such as these, those recording an interaction must comply.

There have also been incidents where someone has gone onto Facebook and live-streamed themselves performing hideously, heinous acts, and sending that video live into the world. But this might be the first incident of an officer live streaming a traffic stop, revealing vital, personal information.

Dallas County Sheriff's Office deputy Francisco Castillo stopped Torry Osby on March 2nd, 2021, and live-streamed the traffic stop on TikTok. The lawsuit alleges the deputy was live-streaming the traffic stop simply to build up the number of followers to his TikTok account.

The problem is that during the live feed of the traffic stop, Deputy Castillo allegedly  broadcast Osby's driver's license on camera, sending personal information including Osby's full name, driver's license number, birthdate, as well as his home address.

Osby's lawsuit includes Deputy Francisco Castillo, as well as the Dallas County Sheriff's Department.  KRLD from Dallas reports that Osby's attorney said his client had no idea he was even being videoed until someone contacted him after the fact who had watched the video on Deputy Castillo's TikTok feed.