I'm no fan of the ACLU or their scams, but I do understand "public."
I used to work fraud and often found myself taking pictures of Nigerians, in public, mainly because we could never be sure who they even were. Drove 'em nuts, and was completely acceptable.
I think I'd listen to the twit rage, then take his picture, and that of the cop, just to prove a point. He left the "OK, Dude, no problem" behind when he hissy-fitted, and forfeited it forever when he called the police.
Would have made a great YouTube, especially if you'd offered him nude pics of his significant other.