New law makes it harder for families to access police body-cam footage

A new state law that went into effect on Dec. 1 has made it more difficult to view police body-worn camera footage in instances of death or serious bodily injury. Prior to the law’s passage, which took place in September, families of victims of police violence and those caught on footage could appeal directly to the law enforcement agency that had been involved. However, the signing of SB 300, otherwise known as the “Criminal Justice Reform Bill,” has made it so that families must now petition the courts to be able to view the footage. The law also only applies to the worst types of recordings involving those “related to death or serious bodily injury.”

According to the law, those wishing to view body-worn camera footage must fill out a notarized form provided by the law enforcement agency and then turn that form into the agency, at which point agency officials will file a petition in Superior Court. The court has seven days to review the recordings and make a decision on whether or not to release the footage to the petitioner.

“This is unnecessarily restrictive and it creates an additional hurdle that impedes the spirit of transparency that these body-worn camera laws were enacted to address,” said Kami Chavis, a law professor and director of the criminal justice program at Wake Forest University.

The change to the body-worn camera footage disclosure is embedded within the omnibus law which includes items such as a database for decertified law enforcement officers and limits to local laws that criminalize poverty.

Read more: https://triad-city-beat.com/new-police-body-cam-law/