Photos, public space and the 1st Amendment – St. Louis Public Radio

This interview will be on St. Louis on the Air at noon Tuesday. This story will be updated after the show. You can listen live.

On a recent Saturday, local high school teacher Tony Nipert deboarded a MetroLink train at the Central West End station while enjoying one of his favorite hobbies: exploring St. Louis. As he exited the train, he decided to snap a quick photo of the train departing toward downtown, and pulled out his phone.

After taking a quick shot of the moving train, he decided to take one more photo because the newly refurbished station was looking so good.

I love how the buildings kind of rise up out of the station. So I got back at a distance, and at this point nobodys on the platform, recalled Nipert, who at the time was working on a piece for Next STL about how MetroLink is safer than many people think. Its kind of empty except for the two security guards. And I take a big landscape photo of it.

About two seconds after he nailed his shot, Nipert told St. Louis on the Air, a security guard yelled at him.

She said, Who are you taking a photo of? And I said, Oh, Im taking it of the platform, and I gestured that I was trying to do that. And she said, You cant do that. And so, you know, I didnt know the rules, Nipert explained. I thought maybe I was in the wrong, so I apologized and walked off.

While Nipert shrugged off the interaction as no big deal, he added that he was surprised to learn Metro Transit wouldnt want people taking photos of the transit system which he thinks of as part of the public commons.

Evie Hemphill

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St. Louis Public Radio

So that was one of the weird things, he said. And I thought to myself [that] maybe theyve got some rules about customer privacy or something and theres a worry about something like that.

In fact, Metro does list rules on its website for photography and video along the transit system. While the agency notes that such images are fun ways to commemorate your trip on Metro, it asks riders to keep from interfering with Metro service and indicates that lights, tripods and other types of equipment are not permitted and that such activities may be limited for security, safety or customer convenience.

The transit agency outlines separate rules for journalists and commercial photographers, saying that such people must first contact the Metro Communications Department for approval.

Those distinctions raise some questions and concerns for Lisa Hoppenjans, assistant professor of practice and director of the First Amendment Clinic at Washington University School of Law.

After all, photography is a form of expression, and as such connects to First Amendment rights enshrined in the U.S. Constitution. Even so, Hoppenjans acknowledges that such rights are not absolute.

On Tuesdays show, Hoppenjans will join host Sarah Fenske for a closer look at what the law says about photography in public places.

Have you ever tried to take a photo in a public place, only to be told it's not allowed? What questions or hypotheticals do you have for First Amendment lawyer Lisa Hoppenjans?

Leave us a voicemail at 314-516-6397, email talk@stlpr.org or share your thoughts via our St. Louis on the Air Facebook group, and help inform our coverage.

St. Louis on the Air brings you the stories of St. Louis and the people who live, work and create in our region. The show is hosted by Sarah Fenske and produced by Alex Heuer, Emily Woodbury, Evie Hemphill, and Kayla Drake. Jane Mather-Glass is our production assistant. The audio engineer is Aaron Doerr.

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Photos, public space and the 1st Amendment - St. Louis Public Radio