Ferguson Missouri: Where The First Amendment Took A Hike

From: Gawker

Two reporters working out of a McDonalds in Ferguson, Mo. say they were arrested and assaulted for no apparent reason while covering the increasingly violent clash between police and protestors on Wednesday night.

According to reports, Washington Post reporter Wesley Lowry and Huffington Post reporter Ryan J. Reilly were both arrested, handcuffed and booked. Once word of their arrests began circulating on social media, they were immediately released.

The already-tense situation in Ferguson escalated earlier today, when SWAT teams descendedon the largely peaceful protests that have been taking place since an unarmed 18-year-old named Michael Brown was shot and killed by a police officer Saturday.

From: Huffington Post

The Huffington Post's Ryan J. Reilly and the Washington Post's Wesley Lowery were arrested Wednesday while covering the protests in Ferguson, Missouri surrounding the death of unarmed African American teenager Michael Brown, who was shot to death by a police officer last week.
Reilly tweeted at around 8:00 P.M. EDT that SWAT officers invaded the McDonald's at which he was working, requesting his identification after he took a photo of them. Lowery was also working at the fast food restaurant.
 Reilly appeared on MSNBC's "All In with Chris Hayes" shortly after his release to recount the arrest."The officer in question, who I repeatedly later asked for his name.. grabbed my things and shoved them into my bag," Reilly said. "He used his finger to put a pressure point on my neck."
"They essentially acted as a military force. It was incredible," he said. "The worst part was he slammed my head against the glass purposefully on the way out of McDonald's and then sarcastically apologized for it."
Reilly said it will be difficult to hold the officer "accountable for his actions," as the officer did not deliver on Reilly's repeated requests for his name or other identification. He said he can't be "100 percent sure" whether the officer was aware that he's a reporter, "but that really shouldn't matter in this equation."
Reilly said he believes he was arrested because he declined to present the officer his identification when asked for it.

The police in Ferguson must have suspended the U.S. Constitution and declared Martial Law without notifying anyone.  What a great bunch of guys.  Perhaps they can campaign for dictator of the year. They'll just need the official   dictator sunglasses.