2 detained near Picatinny Arsenal over photos

[unhappycamper]

2 detained near Picatinny Arsenal over photos
The Associated Press
Posted : Tuesday Apr 1, 2008 5:51:37 EDT

ROCKAWAY TOWNSHIP, N.J. — A false alarm at Picatinny Arsenal.

Two men were detained by authorities Sunday after they were spotted taking photos of the military base. They continued taking pictures after a base officer told them to stop.

Police searched their car on the side of Route 15, and closed the roadway for three hours.

The men told authorities the pictures were taken for a friend who used to live in the area and wanted to see how much it had changed. They were released after authorities checked the photos.

Brig. Gen. William Phillips tells The Star-Ledger of Newark that no one at the base was ever endangered, and that the men never got inside the base. The 6,500-acre base develops weapons for U.S. armed forces.


Rest of article at: http://www.armytimes.com/news/2008/03/ap_picatinny_033108/

[thunder rising]

1. Just your everyday harassment from the government

[NYVet]

2. Everyday harassment?

Why is it harassment that a law that has been on the books since the 1960's was being enforced by local law enforcement agents?

[TommyO]

3. What law prohibits the taking of photographs while on public property?

[NYVet]

5. Here you go, in all its glory.

The governing laws is 18 U.S.C. 795.


United States Code
Title 18 - Crimes and Criminal Procedure
Part I - Crimes
Chapter 37 - Espionage and Censorship
Sec. 795. Photographing and sketching defense installations

(a) Whenever, in the interests of national defense, the President defines certain vital military and naval installations or equipment as requiring protection against the general dissemination of information relative thereto, it shall be unlawful to make any photograph, sketch, picture, drawing, map, or graphical representation of such vital military and naval installations or equipment without first obtaining permission of the commanding officer of the military or naval post, camp, or station, or naval vessels, military and naval aircraft, and any separate military or naval command concerned, or higher authority, and promptly submitting the product obtained to such commanding officer or higher authority for censorship or such other action as he may deem necessary.

(b) Whoever violates this section shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than one year, or both.





Here is some more information.


The President’s definition of vital facilities is Executive Order No. 10104, “Definitions of Vital Military and Naval Installations and Equipment”:

Ex. Ord. No. 10104, Feb. 1, 1950, 15 F.R. 597, provided: Now, therefore, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the foregoing statutory provisions, and in the interests of national defense, I hereby define the following as vital military and naval installations or equipment requiring protection against the general dissemination of information relative thereto:
1. All military, naval, or air-force installations and equipment which are now classified, designated, or marked under the authority or at the direction of the President, the Secretary of Defense, the Secretary of the Army, the Secretary of the Navy, or the Secretary of the Air Force as “top secret,” “secret,” “confidential,” or “restricted,” and all military, naval, or air-force installations and equipment which may hereafter be so classified, designated, or marked with the approval or at the direction of the President, and located within:
(a) Any military, naval, or air-force reservation, post, arsenal, proving ground, range, mine field, camp, base, airfield, fort, yard, station, district, or area.
(b) Any defensive sea area heretofore established by Executive order and not subsequently discontinued by Executive order, and any defensive sea area hereafter established under authority of section 2152 of title 18 of the United States Code.
(c) Any airspace reservation heretofore or hereafter established under authority of section 4 of the Air Commerce Act of 1926 (44 Stat. 570; 49 U.S.C. 174) except the airspace reservation established by Executive Order No. 10092 of December 17, 1949.
(d) Any naval harbor closed to foreign vessels.
(e) Any area required for fleet purposes.
(f) Any commercial establishment engaged in the development or manufacture of classified military or naval arms, munitions, equipment, designs, ships, aircraft, or vessels for the United States Army, Navy, or Air Force.

2. All military, naval, or air-force aircraft, weapons, ammunition, vehicles, ships, vessels, instruments, engines, manufacturing machinery, tools, devices, or any other equipment whatsoever, in the possession of the Army, Navy, or Air Force or in the course of experimentation, development, manufacture, or delivery for the Army, Navy, or Air Force which are now classified, designated, or marked under the authority or at the direction of the President, the Secretary of Defense, the Secretary of the Army, the Secretary of the Navy, or the Secretary of the Air Force as “top secret,” “secret,” “confidential,” or “restricted,” and all such articles, materials, or equipment which may hereafter be so classified, designated, or marked with the approval or at the direction of the President.

3. All official military, naval, or air-force books, pamphlets, documents, reports, maps, charts, plans, designs, models, drawings, photographs, contracts, or specifications which are now marked under the authority or at the direction of the President, the Secretary of Defense, the Secretary of the Army, the Secretary of the Navy, or the Secretary of the Air Force as “top secret,” “secret,” “confidential,” or “restricted,” and all such articles or equipment which may hereafter be so marked with the approval or at the direction of the President.

This order supersedes Executive Order No. 8381 of March 22, 1940, entitled “Defining Certain Vital Military and Naval Installations and Equipment.”






You may also reference 18 U.S.C. 793 and 18 U.S.C. 794.

[lazyriver]

4. I used to live 5 miles from the base and am a bit familiar with it.

You can only see one feature of the base from route 15...the relatively new tower they built not too long after 9/11. At first they said it was to monitor weather, but it looks like an air traffic control tower and nobody believes it has anything to do with weather anymore. It's a monstrosity rising up out of the woods and looks pretty ominous. I bet they were photographing that tower. I know quite a few people who have stopped along route 15 to take photos of it because it is such a curious thing that looks so out of place in the middle of the rolling wooded hills of Jefferson and Rockaway Townships. Otherwise, you can't tell there is a huge military base on that hill unless you get inside. If they entered the base property, they would have had to pass many signs telling them not to. If they drove in or walked the roads, there are guard checkpoints. If they cut through the woods and tried to sneak on, they would encounter razor wire fences and numerous warnings posted all over the place. Even 20+ years ago when we were kids and our curiosity got the better of us, it was fairly clear unauthorized people were not welcome on the property. Most of the signs back then were to discourage deer hunters (poachers, really) and fisherman from sneaking on to pursue game that was seldom if ever pursued by anybody. There were huge deer on that property. There were also some Revolutionary War era abandoned mines that cavers liked to sneak into and explore. The base has become much more secure since 9/11 and the warning signs are much more serious.

Picatinny Arsenal is a huge employer in this still relatively rural part of northwestern NJ. Three generations of my family and my wife's family have worked there in military and civilian positions. The site is secretive and all the locals know the military did and continue to do important weapons R&D there but very few people know of or ask about specifics. The arsenal grounds also contain some of the most polluted sites in the country and those are only the ones the government admits to. To us growing up in its shadow, the arsenal was like the mafia. In many ways it was good to have them on your block but you knew serious stuff was going down there and you never ask about their business.