A three-woman television production crew approached the security line bordering President Barack Obama’s vacation home location in Kailua, Hawaii just before dawn last Wednesday, December 29. The women — host R.J. Hampton, journalist Sherri Kane and producer Sativa Jones — are part of We Are Change, described on its website as “a citizens-based peace and social justice movement working to reveal the truth behind the events of September 11, as well as other suspected false flag attacks that have taken place around the world.”
Its public access TV show is called We Are Change Hawaii. The program, which airs on Channel 53 at 7:00 p.m. every Wednesday on the Big Island of Hawaii, was hoping to tape some footage of President Obama while he was in the area. The crew filmed their encounter with security and their request to videotape the President, which was denied.
According to the account of TV station KITV in Honolulu:
Host R.J. Hampton was told they couldn’t stay, so she spoke into the video camera as she returned to the car.
“OK, you know it Obama we’re OK with you, you OK with us,” Hampton said on the tape, provided to KITV. “We just wanted to get a glimpse of you but we’re moving on because this is a private street and we don’t want to make anybody nervous. Aloha!” She waved to the Secret Service agents at the barricade as she climbed back into the car.
As the women left they continued to videotape while driving along, this time filming some police searches of vehicles lining the Presidential motorcade route. Eventually, at a red light, driver Sherry Kane noted that they were being followed by what she thought was Secret Service and pulled into a gas station. Once they were stopped, a policeman approached and said “Stay in the car. Put that camera off me.” The women said ok and filmed away from him. Soon other police vehicles “and up to five officers” surrounded the car and without any explanation demanded IDs and registration. The crew was in the process of cooperating when an officer on the passenger side suddenly reached into the car and grabbed the camera out of the hands of Sativa Jones. The officer then slammed the camera on top of the car. Jones’ fingers were gashed by the sharp edge of the camera mount during the event.
Once the women realized what had happened they approached the officers involved and pointed out the injury. The policeman who had taken the camera “appeared shaken” at the result of the confiscation and gave his name and badge number with instructions on how to submit a complaint to police officials. The officers present would not allow the crew to make an on-the-spot criminal complaint. The camera also was damaged as the automatic lens cover no longer worked.
Continued the KITV article:
Police would not comment on the specific incident but a spokesman said in protecting the President suspicious vehicles are taken very seriously.
Asked if it was legal for police officers to stop someone from videotaping an officer in a public place, the department said citizens are allowed to video in public places.
The Secret Service Office in Honolulu did not respond to telephone and e-mail requests for comment.
TheBlaze.com website summed up its view of the encounter as follows: “A government ‘truther’ public access TV crew trying to catch a glimpse of President Obama on vacation in Hawaii caught something else on video: police stalking them, confronting them, and then bashing their camera.”
In reference to the famed “crashers” of a 2009 White House dinner, a comment elsewhere humorously observed: “The problem with what the folks at ‘We Are Change Hawaii’ did was when first confronted at the secret service roadblock, they should have introduced themselves as Michaele and Tareq Salahi. That would have got them right on the property and lunch with Obama rather than being assaulted and their cameras broken.”
Photo: President Barack Obama travels by motorcade as he leaves Marine Corps Base Hawaii in Kaneohe, Hawaii, Wednesday, Dec. 29, 2010.: AP Images
