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Police redact, blur body cam footage – backlog grows
Police records custodians spend hours combing through and blurring body camera footage to comply with privacy concerns under records law, while requestors, ranging from attorneys to journalists to civilians, can wait weeks, if not months on end to see the footage they seek.
DPS body camera bill restricts release of video
State lawmakers are moving to fund body cameras for Department of Public Safety officers -- but only after restricting when people can get access to the footage.
Deploying body-worn cameras – next steps for DPS
On September 30, 2020, Gov. Doug Ducey announced a plan to deploy 150 body-worn cameras (BWCs) to troopers in the Arizona Department of Public Safety. This is an excellent first step for DPS to join the thousands of other law enforcement agencies across the United States that have already deployed BWCs. BWCs can produce numerous benefits, from improved citizen attitudes to reductions in complaints[...]
Will Arizona follow the national trend in banning police body worn camera footage?
As more law enforcement agencies in Arizona suit up officers with body-worn cameras, public access to this footage becomes a controversial topic.
Republican lawmaker: ‘Biased’ videos from police body cameras create ‘altered version’ of reality
Sen. John Kavanagh doesn’t believe his eyes when he sees video from police body cameras, which he calls “extremely untrustworthy.”
Police unions back bill that questions validity of video
A bill proposed in the Arizona Legislature challenges the notion that video evidence in police shootings and fights is foolproof.
Arizona police agencies get low marks for body camera policies
Police departments in Phoenix, Mesa and Tucson fell short in a new report that rated departments for policies that ensure that body cameras are a “tool for accountability, not a tool for surveillance” by agencies.
Roll the tape: Valley police departments deploy body cameras
Officers from Arizona State University, Tempe and Maricopa County Sheriff’s office recently deployed body cameras to their officers, following suit of several other cities around the Valley, including Phoenix and Mesa. Body cameras have been adopted by law enforcement agencies across the nation, capturing interactions with the public and potentially controversial scenes of conflict.
Study committee shoots down body camera legislation proposals
Saying the issues surrounding law enforcement body cameras should be left up to local police chiefs and county sheriffs, a study committee examining concepts for possible legislation about body cameras voted down more than a dozen different proposals.
Panel ponders stricter law on release of police body camera videos
As police are increasingly recording interactions with alleged lawbreakers and victims, lawmakers are considering whether body camera video should be treated differently from other public records.
Sheriff who opposed body cameras brags about getting them
An Arizona sheriff who in the past has adamantly opposed putting body cameras on officers is now boasting that 700 of his deputies have been issued the recording devices.
Amid national furor, debate continues over 2 Arizona police shooting bills
SB1445 was supposed to protect the identity of police officers in the often volatile and emotional aftermath of a police shooting. SB1300 was supposed to protect the privacy of innocent victims and witnesses captured on police body cameras.
