A civil rights group accused the U.S. government of harassing law-abiding photographers outside a courthouse, saying in a lawsuit Thursday that a vague federal regulation restricting photography has been used inconsistently and is unconstitutional. The New York Civil Liberties Union used the case of a photographer who was arrested in November outside federal court in Manhattan to illustrate its claim. Antonio Musumeci, the only plaintiff in the lawsuit, was arrested as he videotaped a political protest in a public plaza. Musumeci, a member of the Manhattan Libertarian Party and a software developer for an investment bank, lives in Edgewater, N.J. The civil rights group said the regulation he was accused of violating is unconstitutional because it regulates noncommercial photography in outdoor areas such as sidewalks and plazas, where the public is supposed to have unrestricted access.The lawsuit, which targeted the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and the Federal Protective Service, accused the government of using the regulation "as an excuse to arrest and harass law-abiding photographers."
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