On Monday morning, a YouTuber found himself in handcuffs at Schenectady City Hall after he defied a city law by continuing to film inside the building.
Sean Reyes, who runs the Long Island Audit YouTube channel, was taken into custody and charged with trespassing, as confirmed by Schenectady police.
During the video, Reyes stated that he was at City Hall in his capacity as a citizen journalist, intending to file Freedom of Information Law requests related to alleged city corruption. It’s worth noting that Reyes is not affiliated with any recognized news organization.
Reyes has a criminal history, having served a three-year sentence in a state correctional facility from 2013 to 2016 for attempted robbery.
In a GoFundme fundraiser initiated after his arrest, Reyes revealed that he has been arrested 10 times in the past three years since he started his citizen journalism activities.
The video, which was live-streamed on Monday morning and has since attracted over 100,000 views, shows Reyes entering the office of Schenectady Mayor Gary McCarthy and requesting to speak with him.
An aide asked Reyes to stop recording their conversation, but he refused. He then provided his email address and left the mayor’s office.
Reyes subsequently visited the office of Schenectady General Services Commissioner Paul LaFond, where he requested access to the city’s financial records.
He also had a conversation with Finance Commissioner Anthony Ferrari, during which he asked for McCarthy’s city credit card records. Ferrari informed him that the mayor did not possess a city-issued card.
Despite being asked by a city security guard to stop filming, Reyes continued to record inside the Waste Collection office. The guard reminded him that filming inside the building beyond the security desk was prohibited by an executive order from the mayor.
The order does permit filming in City Hall for public meetings and throughout the building with prior permission.
The executive order stipulates that public access to city-owned and leased buildings can be limited if the areas are “primarily intended for the use of city employees in the conduct of their business.”
Two security guards directed Reyes to McCarthy’s office for any further queries about the order. However, Reyes ignored their request to turn off his camera as he moved past the security desk.
When Reyes continued to film, the security guards warned him that he would be deemed a trespasser and asked to leave the premises. Reyes responded by asserting his status as a journalist and his intent to record the building for the sake of transparency and accountability.
Despite repeated requests to leave, Reyes refused. Uniformed Schenectady police officers were summoned to the security desk, and Reyes was warned that he would be arrested for trespassing if he did not stop filming and leave.
“You’re going to have to go ahead and do that, sir,” Reyes responded to the officer. He was subsequently arrested for trespassing.
Mayor McCarthy explained that the executive order was put in place in October 2022 to protect City Hall employees from harassment.
“It’s not people making a legitimate inquiry, but the manner in which they claim to be auditing is really done more in a manner that could be construed as harassment or intimidation of people,” he commented on Monday. “It’s sticking a camera up close to people’s faces or walking into areas that might be somewhat restricted.”
After being released from police custody, Reyes live-streamed again on Monday afternoon. He announced that he had received a summons to appear in City Court on April 19. During the broadcast, he returned to police headquarters to request police body camera footage of his earlier encounter with officers inside City Hall. A sergeant on duty informed him that he would need to file the request at City Hall.
Reyes did not return to City Hall during the 24-minute live-stream, which has been viewed over 47,000 times as of the time of writing. He did, however, mention that he was considering legal action against the city, potentially in the form of a state or federal lawsuit.
Disagree – Entering a government building without permission is unacceptable, regardless of who you are.
Disagree – Rules apply to everyone, even famous YouTubers.