The faces of police officers who are filmed during routine operations must be made unrecognizable when these images are posted on the Internet.
The Higher Regional Court of Cologne (OLG) decided in a judgment and sentenced a Bonn Youtuber to a fine of 2800 euros for violating art and copyright law.
The appeal judgment of the Bonn Regional Court from June 2021 is now final.
In the first instance, the Bonn District Court acquitted the accused: The unfiltered film recordings were covered by the right to freedom of expression, it was said at the time.
The 32-year-old student has been running a YouTube channel for years, on which he distributes videos of police, fire and rescue services.
Several police officers reported him after they were filmed while they were working and their faces were not pixelated for publication.
The OLG found in its judgment that police officers have a right to their own picture.
Both the right to freedom of expression and the freedom of the press have to take second place.
Exceptions are historically relevant events or images that document police violence, for example.