The problem with that is that they get 12 cops to body-block any cameras 8ft away or more... sometimes you have to be close to get a good angle.
The solution is to make sure there are repercussions for cops doing illegal things, not to prevent laws from being passed because cops might try to twist the intention of the law to try to justify illegal acts.
Courts have a lot of discretion in deciding cases, and many cases come down to a question of intent. If 12 cops intentionally body-block someone who is recording, that's something that a judge isn't likely to look at too fondly.
That’s all fine and well, but when they can just take your device then you no longer have a video of whatever you were attempting to record. Things used in a “crime” are subject to seizure.
This is what happens. It's not hypothetical.
People filming cops isn't a problem. It doesn't need to be regulated.
It is not ( yet ) illegal to stand in front of a camera, to block something behind you.
Police should be subject to more scrutiny and not less. This specifically makes it easier for them to evade scrutiny. I struggle to see any good faith argument that leads to less accountability or evidence in general. It’s almost comedic in a “What are you afraid of if you have nothing to hide” sense that is often applied in the other direction of police having authority beyond what is reasonable.
How about we just don’t pass laws giving police more power?
Mandatory body cam laws would be a lot more relevant in that case, not 8-foot citizen recording laws.