We Are Out Here on a Suspicious Activity Call’: Missouri Black Man Arrested for Failing to Identify Himself While Legally Filming In Public After Cop Bragging About His 17 Years on the Force

A Black man was detained last month for failing to identify himself while only filming video in public by a Missouri police officer who boasted about his 17 years of service without ever being sued.

I have 17 years of experience in this field. According to bodycam footage taken on November 4, Grandview police officer Beau Bailey stated, “I have done that without a complaint or a lawsuit on my record.”

The Black man, who seemed to be Ariel Moses, the proprietor of the First Amendment auditing YouTube channel Kansas City Accountability, replied, “Okay, this will be your first.”

No, it won’t because, as Bailey informed me, I am the subject matter expert on the law, including constitutional law.

My career was the result of hundreds of hours of study. There is a legal reason we are here. We have a valid reason for contacting you.

As part of my job, I’m also asking you to provide me your name and birthdate so I can confirm it before we release you. You will be imprisoned for not identifying yourself, so I won’t ask you again.

As stated on the website of a Missouri lawyer, authorities must have a reasonable suspicion that the individual has committed a crime or is about to commit one, even though Missouri is a stop and ID state.

In this case, the bank staff called the police since Moses was just filming in front of the bank.

If Bailey had studied constitutional law during those 17 years he boasted about, he would have learned that the First Amendment does not need reasonable suspicion of a crime and protects public recording.

But because he was filming it from the outside, Bailey’s partner tried to utilize his interpretation of the law to his advantage by implying that he was preparing a bank heist.

According to Grandview police officer Thorrin Savage, the suspicious aspect we’re discussing is that you’re recording a structure—not just any building, but a bank—and banks are robbed.

Moses, however, rectified their false information.

He told me, “I’m just out here with my GoPro in public, and I’m not doing anything wrong.” In public, there is no expectation of privacy.

But Bailey maintained that because he was recording in public, he was suspicious.

We have every legal right to identify you because we are out here on a suspicious activity call; you should further investigate the case law.

But the cop said, “I can’t tell you the name of that case law right now,” when Moses pressed him to elaborate.

Bailey then insisted on granting Moses permission to film their talk in order to uphold his First Amendment rights.

Moses, however, argued that by demanding his identity when there was no plausible suspicion that he was connected to a crime, they were infringing on his Fourth Amendment rights.

He was apprehended and sent to jail by the police, as promised. But two hours later, without knowing his true name, they let him go.

At the end of the video, Moses is seen carrying a brown paper bag that is full of his possessions. The name John Doe and the letters B/M, which stand for Black male, are scrawled on the bag.

Moses said, “I just got out of jail.” I kept my name a secret from them. I can’t give you anything.

He claimed to have been on the force for 17 years, so he is aware of what is happening, and I must present my ID to him. Yes, he picked everything up fast.

Inquiries from the Atlanta Black Star regarding whether Moses plans to bring a lawsuit have not yet received a response.

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