Part 5, “Running Plates on Citizen Photographers.”
(For earlier parts of this series, please click this link: Witch-Hunting a Blogger in Whitewater, Wisconsin.)
From the public records, in September 2007, our Director of Public Works, Dean Fischer, asks Chief Coan to run the license plate number of an elderly man who had been taking pictures of a construction project on the east side of our city. The exchange appears below in black font, followed by the actual PDF documents I obtained, and then my commentary in blue font.
The exchange:
From: Dean Fischer
Sent: Tuesday, September 04, 2007 1:55 PM
To: James Coan
Subject: license plate
Jim,
We have an older gentleman who shows up every few days to take pictures of the East Town project. No big deal usually. Now I wonder if it might be “John Adams”. Will you run the plate number? [I have deleted — appears in original], Green Ford Ranger pickup truck.
Dean Fischer
Director of Public Works City of Whitewater
Phone 262-473-0540 ext 240
Fax 262-473-0549
******
From: James Coan
Sent: Tuesday, September 04, 2007 3:24 PM
To: Dean Fischer
Subject: RE: license plate
Dean,
Good thought as I think that anyone we spot taking photos of City projects might be a possible suspect. In this case though the plate comes back to a [I have deleted the name of the elderly citizen-photographer and his address]. [name of some Coan asked] knows the guy and says that [deleted by City of Whitewater — possibly a derogatory reference to the citizen]. She doesn’t now why he would be out taking photos of the East Town project, but she did not think him capable of being John Adams (of course it might be a person we least suspect). Let me know if the guy becomes a nuisance and maybe we can have an officer talk to him in order to find out what he might be up to.
Also, I have purposely been avoiding reading “Free Whitewater” so do you know if there have been any photos as of late?
Jim
******
From: Dean Fischer
Sent: Tuesday, September 04, 2007 4:01 PM
To: James Coan
Subject: RE: license plate
Jim,
I know [I have deleted name — appears in version from city] very well. He definitely is not John Adams. He is not a bother for taking pictures either. Just thought we should check it out. No pictures on the site as of lately. He now is into “you tube” cartoons.
Dean
The files:
I have made the PDF files confirming this exchange available here — 2008-1 (4). Deletions from the City of Whitewater are in black throughout the documents, typically so that the city can shield the names of those who have complained about my blog. That’s fair enough — a person should be able to complain anonymously or pseudonymously.
There’s an inescapable contradiction, though — city officials worked to uncover my name, and left untouched the names of private citizens they suspected of being me, and deleted only the names of those who complained about me.
My deletions, of the names of private citizens, often ones ‘suspected’ of being me, are in red. Coan, and those who aided him bandied about names of private citizens, and those names are in the documents that I received, but I will not display those names the way these public officials shamefully discussed them among themselves.
My comments:
1. Suspects. Coan uses the term suspect for a blogger. We have had any number of break-ins and robberies in the city — the people who might have committed those acts are suspects. Coan distorts the language of the law that he is sworn to uphold.
2. Taking Photos. So a man takes photos every few days of our East Town construction project, and Coan and Fischer decide that makes him a so-called suspect. Does it not occur to them that he’s taking pictures because he’s likely proud of the construction project in his town? When does taking a photograph, of a construction project in a small rural town, peacefully and lawfully, make a man a suspect for anything? Shameful.
3. Running Plates. Director of Public Works Dean Fischer thinks that he’s entitled to request that the police run a man’s license plate number because he took a few pictures of a common construction project (although one widely celebrated in our town). Why? Because he might be John Adams (no — I’m John Adams!). The man is no bother, by Fischer’s account — it’s a political motivation that Fischer has.
4. Photographers Beware. Chief Coan runs the plate, and then observes that Fischer had a “good thought as I [that is, Coan] think that anyone we spot taking photos of City projects might be a possible suspect.” If you have a camera, beware — they might run your plate, too.
5. Fischer’s Network?. Director of Public Works Fischer requests that the plate be run, but at the time he makes the request, he does not appear to know the identity of the man lawfully taking the photos. That leads me to think that Fischer was not there initially to see the man or his truck — someone else likely reported this information to Fischer, and he emailed Chief Coan.
Who might have reported it to Fischer? His public employees? Did Fischer have a network of public employees taking down plate numbers, if they thought someone might be a blogger? If so, why would they think that this was within the scope of their city employment.
Director of Public Works Fischer and Chief Coan write each other this way, and and yet Coan thinks I’m arrogant. Disgraceful.
6. Where is the City Manager? Director of Public Works Fischer and IT Administrator Nobling work for City Manager Kevin Brunner. What does he think about their conduct? I have no idea. Will he do anything meaningful about it? (I’ll have more about this at the end of my series.)
Next Up on Tuesday, March 4th at 8 AM CST: Part 6, “Asking About Former Residents.”