Legislators and WisconsinEye staff clashed after a women’s reproductive rights organization used footage from a Senate session in June.

Planned Parenthood Wisconsin used footage of Senate President Mike Ellis in two ads after Ellis raised his voice and broke a gavel during a Senate session that discussed a bill to require ultrasounds be conducted 24 hours before an abortion.

Jon Henkes, president and CEO of WisconsinEye, a privately funded organization that films Legislature sessions and committee hearings, released a statement last week that said Planned Parenthood distorted what occurred at the Senate session.

“Video of state Senator Mike Ellis that was used in the Planned Parenthood TV commercial is a clear misrepresentation of what occurred on the Senate floor,” Henkes said in the statement. “The TV ad creates the false impression that Senate debate was inappropriately shut down by Senator Ellis, who is targeted by Planned Parenthood for election defeat in 2014.”

Henkes added what Planned Parenthood did not show was Democratic senators against the bill continually disrupting the roll call vote.

Sen. Chris Larson, D-Milwaukee, called on Henkes to rescind his statement because it was biased and inaccurate, and against the non-partisan stance WisconsinEye said it takes.

“As someone that watched my colleagues get screamed at and gaveled down that day, I am stunned that your organization has decided to make statements about the appropriateness of that kind of out-of-control, bullying behavior that ended debate while senators waited to speak,” Larson said.

Justin Sargent, one of Larson’s staff members, said Larson had to get involved after WisconsinEye made the issue a political one, not one about digital copyright.

Sargent said organization staff members were not present at the Senate floor, but spoke out about what happened that day anyway.

“The statements they made in their press release were so over the top that it alarmed [Larson] a great deal,” Sargent said. “They weren’t there in person, yet they had the audacity to say that everybody had the chance, all voices were heard, and that is flat out wrong.”

Calls to Henkes about his statements were not returned.

Henkes not only commented on Planned Parenthood’s partisan use of the footage, but said in the statement they violated the terms and conditions of purchasing footage from WisconsinEye.

Henkes said in the statement the terms and conditions state the footage must be used fairly, which does not mean a right to use, but to use for the purposes of education and accuracy, not politics.

Henkes added in the statement after Planned Parenthood was challenged under the “fair use” argument, the organization found video of the incident from another source.

Henkes also said in the statement WisconsinEye’s copyright laws are used for every organization, regardless of their political leaning.

“But it was Planned Parenthood that knowingly misused WisconsinEye content to mislead its viewers,” Henkes said. “Particularly disturbing is Planned Parenthood’s callous disregard for the implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing embodied in the User Agreement.”

Henkes said in the statement he hoped this controversy will discourage further misuse of WisconsinEye footage.

Calls to Stephanie Wilson, communications director at Planned Parenthood, were not returned.