A YouTuber and self-proclaimed “citizen journalist” was recently sentenced to 180 days after attempting to record video inside the Marshall Count Revenue Office.
Lana Patrick was arrested on May 16 for third-degree criminal trespass, disorderly conduct and obstructing government operations. Patrick, whose YouTube channel is “J-Town Press,” and fellow YouTuber Russell Pickron of “Georgia Transparency” entered the Marshall County Courthouse earlier that day with cameras rolling in an attempt to video what they believed to be public spaces. The two style themselves as “First Amendment auditors,” endeavoring to “root out tyranny” by exposing the inner workings of local governments.
Patrick and Pickron made their way into the County Revenue Office, where they were confronted about why they were there with cameras. After being asked multiple times to leave the area and refusing to do so, Patrick was arrested by a Marshall County Sheriff’s deputy.
After reviewing the deputy’s bodycam footage and the footage recorded by Patrick and Pickron, which has since been taken down from YouTube, Marshall County Judge Mitchell Floyd found Patrick guilty on all charges and issued a sentence on August 8.
In the sentencing document, Floyd explained certain limitations to the First Amendment and what conduct is acceptable in public spaces.
“Courthouses are certainly taxpayer owned government property. They are a workplace for numerous government agencies providing services to the public and disruptions can hinder the steady flow thereof. Moreover, sensitive and protected information is processed and maintained throughout and those same taxpayers that expect expediency also expect privacy and security. It is inconsistent with every holding this Court has found to allow unfettered picture taking and video recording within offices that handle such material.”
Floyd stated that Patrick and Pickron had “no legitimate” business in the Revenue Office and ignored direct commands from law enforcement to leave the area.
Floyd sentenced Patrick to 485 days in jail to be served consecutively — 30 days for the trespassing charge, 90 days for disorderly conduct and 365 days for obstructing government operations. However, 305 days were suspended, leaving the sentence at 180 consecutive days plus 24 months of unsupervised probation for each charge and various fines and court costs.
Patrick was ordered to self-surrender at the courthouse on Monday, August 26, but the sentencing is on hold pending appeal.
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