Dressed in military gear, Massachusetts cops were beating a man when they realized another man was video recording them from the other side of a fence, standing about 20 feet away.

Several cops then stormed up to Thomas Donovan, forcing the law student and aspiring cop to retreat as he asked for their badge numbers, reminding them he had every right to record.

Not that it made a difference that day.

The cops first pepper sprayed him, then knocked the phone from his hand before handcuffing him, double-locking the cuffs for good measure.

Meanwhile, another cop used his boot to stomp on the phone in an obvious attempt to destroy it.

The cops then carted Donovan off to jail, charging him with disorderly conduct and failure to disperse....