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Body Camera to Record Myself Being Attacked While Voting

13 points by chicagoscott ↗ HN
I'm probably going to have to vote in person instead of by mail. If I'm threatened or attacked by members of the Proud Boys or similar groups, I want it recorded.

So I'm looking for recommendations for a body camera that will record audio and video, and not just store it in the device, but also stream it in real time (or as quickly as possible anyway) to a remote location. If the camera is confiscated or destroyed I want the video available for me or my survivors.

I'll also take suggestions for an app for my Android phone, although I lean toward a standalone device.

16 comments

[ 3.8 ms ] story [ 56.8 ms ] thread
whammywon
I really don't think it's going to be an issue, but I've heard that the ACLU has an app for recording/streaming police interaction. Perhaps that could be a good starting point, and you wouldn't (or shouldn't) have to buy any extra equipment.
andrewl
I very much hope you're correct. I don't know where the submitter lives, but we've had a few small marches of angry young men with guns here.

And Atlantic writer Barton Gellman said this in a radio interview yesterday:

This is the first time in 40 years that we're going to have a presidential election without a court supervising the Republican "ballot security operations" on Election Day. Republicans were caught doing all kinds of voter suppression and intimidation in 1981, and a lawsuit against the Republican National Committee placed the RNC under a consent decree, a court order, that forbade it to use many methods of voter purging, voter intimidation. The Republicans had rounded up large numbers of law enforcement and former military people wearing armbands and guns, carrying radios, confronting voters and demanding evidence of their right to vote, warning them that it's a felony to vote when you're not eligible in the correct neighborhood, confronting poll workers who tried to help voters as they're legally allowed to do. This was in New Jersey, but it was a nationwide consent decree. And the methods that had been used in New Jersey were widely known methods and had been used for decades to suppress, in particular, the votes of people of color in this country. ...

And there was a consent decree here that lasted for decades, and it expired in 2018. And this time the Election Day operations of the Republican side are going to be free of court supervision. They're going to be able to decide for themselves how they operate that day, and maybe they'll be sued after the fact, but it will be too late to make much difference in terms of the outcome. The Trump campaign is recruiting what it's calling "an army for Trump." The president's son [Donald Trump Jr.] has gone on television calling for "all able-bodied men and women" — Why able-bodied? What kind of physical confrontation does he have in mind at the polls? — "all able-bodied men and women to stop the election from being stolen by Democrats."

Source: https://www.npr.org/2020/10/01/919023364/trump-will-not-acce...

smt88
You should call your Secretary of State or a voter hotline to ask about legality here. Polls are highly regulated places.
codegeek
Be careful of laws carrying recording devices in a polling booth. You don't want your vote to be disqualified.
[dead] DarthGhandi
I really can't wait until US election season is over. You've all gone absolutely insane.
dang
Maybe so, but please don't post unsubstantive comments to HN.
bradknowles
As an American and a Democrat who lives in Texas, I think I’m one of the people who would be more likely to be suppressed at the polls.

So, in my personal opinion, the person you (dang) are responding to is not going overboard.

polynomial
Is there a reason you believe you will be attacked while voting? I've been voting for a while now, and have never seen any incidents. Everyone just lines up and casts their vote.
Ancapistani
99% of the people being vilified as “alt-right”, “right wing extremists”, “militias”, etc. are fringe libertarians. If there were actual voter intimidation I would fully expect that they be on your side.
Ancapistani
In response to your original question, if you feel the need, I’d take a multi-pronged approach.

Audio is going to be easier to capture than video, and your phone is likely more than suitable. I’d get and test one of the many audio recording apps out there that stream to a remote server, so if your phone is lost you still have a copy of the data.

I’d also have a stand-alone audio recording device, like is/was commonly used to record lectures. They’re available that use microcasettes often in thrift stores, and are inexpensive online that use flash memory. Bonus points for it being a decent “red herring” for someone looking to uncover recording devices on you to fixate on and stop a search.

For video, there are tons of “spy cameras” on Amazon. The ones in the form of a pen can be clipped on your pocket and be relatively inconspicuous. I’m not aware of any that can stream to the cloud through your phone, though.

RhysU
What's the polling location where you anticipate being attacked?
poiuyt098
in-person voting is done by secret ballot. Oral ballots haven't been used since the 1800s. No one will know how you voted except you.