BALTIMORE (AP) — The American Civil Liberties Union of Maryland says it wants police officers statewide to know citizens have the right to record their actions.

The ACLU chapter announced Monday that it is asking law enforcement agencies statewide for clear policies and training to ensure that officers know the public can record them as they conduct official business.

The civil liberties group is representing an Owings Mills man who is suing Baltimore police over the seizure of a cell phone he used to record officers making an arrest at the Preakness.

The U.S. Department of Justice has asked a federal judge to side with the plaintiff, Christopher Sharp. The Maryland ACLU says recent federal appeals court rulings in Massachusetts and Illinois have upheld the right of citizens to record public police actions.

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