DEPARTMENT: Police
DEPARTMENT HEAD: William P. McManus
COUNCIL DISTRICTS IMPACTED: Citywide
SUBJECT:
Police Body Worn Cameras Pilot Program
SUMMARY:
Staff briefing regarding the body worn camera pilot program for the San Antonio Police Department (SAPD).
BACKGROUND INFORMATION:
On January 15, 2014, SAPD presented to the Governance Committee information regarding a proposal for a body worn camera pilot program, as well as current technology the department has in place. The Department also briefed the Public Safety Committee about the program during the February 2014 meeting.
Since November 2010, SAPD has installed mobile video and voice recording equipment (COBAN) in 664 patrol vehicles. This equipment has the capability to gather video evidence on offenders as well as improve officer safety and accountability. The purpose of installing this equipment was to ensure officer safety, evidence purposes, and accountability. The San Antonio Airport Police has also adopted and issued body worn cameras department wide this past spring.
Body worn cameras are a relatively new development in policing and the subject of much significance in the law enforcement and civil liberties communities. Various events across the nation have brought this issue to the forefront.
Proponents of body cameras argue that recording police interactions with citizens may help protect police departments from spurious lawsuits, protect citizens from police misconduct, and provide evidentiary support in criminal cases. In September of 2014 the Police Executive Research forum (PERF), in conjunction with the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), released their report "Implementing a Body-Worn Camera Program, Recommendations and Lessons Learned". This report outlined and supported the issuance of body worn cameras, including recommendations on operation and policies of body cameras for law enforcement. The report also noted that the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) is in favor of such programs.
The SAPD initiated the Body Worn Digital Recording Systems (BWDRS) pilot program in March of 2014. During the pilot program, SAPD selected six different models of body worn cameras based on studies conducted by the National Institute of Justice (NIJ) and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). Each vendor provided 25 units to be tested and the equipment was tested by officers from the Downtown Bike Unit and the Westside Patrol Substation. The pilot was designed to gather data on the technology's effects on citizen and police behavior/accountability, evidentiary value, operation feasibility, program costs, compatibility with COBAN, and other factors.
SAPD staff also continued to monitor the results of other cities' pilot programs and review the PERF recommendations. The PERF study included concerns expressed by civil rights groups and legal experts who have raised concerns about this technology. The American Civil Liberties Union's expressed concerns over data retention and security, privacy concerns, and the need of a model policy regulating use of the technology.
The PERF report also included policy recommendations for police departments across the country using body cameras or interested in doing so. The current draft policy utilized by the SAPD during its BWDRS pilot program met most all of the recommendations outlined and addressed the major concerns noted by the PERF study.
Key issues addressed in the policy include the following:
· When to begin and end recording (e.g. at the receipt of a call, or immediately prior to initiating a contact with an individual and until the contact is complete);
· When not to record (e.g. in personal areas, patient care areas of hospitals, when contacting confidential informants or covert personnel);
· Who can access stored records and who can authorize requests to view videos; and
· Video retention and deletion time tables.
Both the SAPD Labor Relations Committee and the San Antonio Police Officers' Association have assisted in the development and review of the pilot program and will make recommendations to the Chief of Police regarding the feasibility of deploying BWDRS units for permanent use.
ISSUE:
This is a briefing on the pilot program that SAPD has conducted to determine the benefits, feasibility, and cost of deploying a body worn police camera system for the San Antonio Police Department.
ALTERNATIVES:
This item is for briefing purposes only.
FISCAL IMPACT:
This item provides a briefing and no action is required at this time.
RECOMMENDATION:
SAPD will continue with the pilot program and provide to the City Council a briefing on the results in December 2014 during a City Council B Session.