06:44 AM PDT on Thursday, July 15, 2004

By JIM FORMAN / KING 5 News

SEATTLE - For hundreds of thousands, the Ballard Locks are a must-see stop on the Seattle tour. Countless pictures are taken there every day. But one Seattle man was stopped by Homeland Security.

"There are no signs saying not to take photographs of the Ballard Locks and railroad bridge," said Ballard resident Ian Spiers who just wanted to snap some pictures for his college photography class.

He thought the famed locks and landmark railroad bridge would be the perfect subject.

KING Ballard resident Ian Spiers said he just wanted to snap some pictures for his college photography class.

That was until someone reported him twice as a suspicious character, bringing out federal and local law enforcers.

"We are talking about eight grown men with guns," he said. "It scared the hell out of me."

Spiers said all he had was a camera and a tripod.

Spiers was questioned and told it was against the law to photograph the area.

The ACLU says Homeland Security went too far.

"We've never heard of such a law," said Doug Honig, ACLU. "Government officials ought to be able to tell the difference between a tourist and a terrorist."

Spiers says it's not just about racial profiling. Still, his Web site – Brown Equals Terrorist – is prompting a debate over how the government exercises authority in these post 9/11 times.

"I don't know why I was stopped. I still don't know," he said.

He is still waiting for an answer.

"We take all reports of security concerns extremely seriously and as we get these reports we will continue to respond to them," said Sean Whitcomb, Seattle Police.

And Spiers agrees; he just questions how those investigations are carried out.

"They need to be exercising judgment that doesn't scare the hell out of the citizens, and that includes me," he said.

Spiers said, while he was told he couldn't take pictures, a federal agent on the scene took his picture.

As for the government, the Corps of Engineers, which operates the locks, welcomes all tourists and their cameras.

Ian Spiers hopes his ordeal leads to some changes in Homeland Security training, focusing attention on what someone does, and not just on how they look.

Spiers' Web site is getting a lot of attention. It crashed under the traffic earlier this week.