Police body cameras and the policies that guide them have been major subjects of debate over recent years. Some of the major concerns have focused on how the cameras will be financed, when will they need to be turned on, and who will have access to the footage. Those details are still being worked out, but another big issue is now at the forefront of the body camera debate – Should police officers be allowed to review body camera footage before writing their reports?
Both sides can make a case for their reasoning. Those who say police shouldn’t be able to re-watch footage of an incident say it would ruin the evidentiary value of police reports, and others say police shouldn’t be allowed to watch the tape because citizens aren’t allowed to do the same before they give their police report. Law enforcement agencies, many of whom strongly support the idea of being allowed access to camera footage prior to writing a report, say that at the end of the day, accuracy is what matters, and the footage will allow them to be as accurate as possible.
In a push for fairness and transparency, both the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, which oftentimes investigates officer-involved incidents, and Governor Mark Dayton have thrown their support behind the notion that officers should not be allowed to watch video of the incident prior to completing their reports. That has created some harsh feelings between the parties and law enforcement groups, but at least one department is considering forgoing that contentious point in order to ensure fairness.
Maplewood’s Police Policy
Maplewood recently drafted a police body camera police that would ensure police officers involved in incidents with great bodily harm would not be able to watch the camera footage before writing their official report.
The police policy reads “[Any officer involved in a] shooting, in-custody death, or other law enforcement activity resulting in death or great body harm will have to turn their camera over to a supervisor, who would then turn it over to an ‘investigating authority’ — like the BCA — before transferring the data.”
However, the policy would allow an officer to review the footage prior to writing their report if they received clearance from their chief or those charged with investigating them. Maplewood police chief Paul Schnell said he wrote the policy conceding the point of contention after consulting with defense attorneys and county prosecutors who had concerns about “prior review.”
Not surprisingly, the Law Enforcement Labor Services Union, which represents the Maplewood department, is none too happy with the department conceding the point on prior review.
“The prior review issue is likely to be one of our biggest concerns,” said Isaac Kaufman, general council for the union.
Schell will pitch his proposed policy to the Maplewood City Council on September 26, and he’ll have some help. The American Civil Liberties Union, the NAACP and the Minnesota Coalition on Government Information are expected to speak in favor of the policy at the meeting.
