6.5 Body Worn Camera Program

Exactly as extracted, unformatted — for checking against the original. The readable version is easier to read.

Centreville Police Department
Title: Body Worn Camera Program Directive #: 6.5
Issued: 7.3.2018 Revised: 4.14.2022 / Rev. #2
Approved by: Joseph S. Saboury
Chief of Police
PURPOSE
The purpose of this policy is to provide Centreville Police Officers with instructions on when and
how to use body- worn cameras (BWCs) so officers may reliably record their contacts with the public
in accordance with the law and to establish guidelines regarding storage, release, and retention of
video files.
BACKGROUND
The Centreville Police Department's body-worn camera (BWC) system is a point-of-view style
recording device designed to approximate the vantage point of the recording officer. Recordings will
not capture everything that is occurring during an incident (e.g., slight movements or resistance by
the subject, or other items that cannot be seen, statements that were not recorded, etc.).
Recordings also lack the officer's perception of what is taking place. Personnel are reminded that the
existence of a recording does not decrease the need for them to complete a detailed written report.
It is of the utmost importance for personnel to understand the need for detailed reports when
transcribing what was seen, heard, and perceived by them since these may not be captured by the
recording.
Information captured by the BWC's can be used in multiple ways to benefit the Department, its
personnel, and the community. Recorded materials can be used as evidence in court proceedings, as
training materials for law enforcement officers, to improve complaint resolution, to enhance the
accuracy of officers' reports and court testimony, and they may be released to the community to
enhance public trust in police activities. The BWC may also be useful in documenting crime and
accident scenes or other events that include the confiscation and documentation of evidence or
contraband.
LEGAL CONSIDERATIONS
A. The State Wiretap Act makes it lawful for a law enforcement officer, in the course of the
officer’s regular duty, to intercept an oral communication with a Body Worn Digital
Recording Device capable of recording video and oral communication if:
i) The law enforcement officer is in uniform or displaying the officer’s badge or other
insignia;
ii) The law enforcement officer is party to the oral communication;
iii) The law enforcement officer notifies the individual, as soon as practical, that the
individual is being recorded, unless it is unsafe, impractical, or impossible to do so, and;
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iv) The oral interception is being made as part of a video tape or digital recording.
B. The State Wiretap Act also makes it lawful for a law enforcement officer in uniform, or
prominently displaying the officer’s badge or other insignia, to intercept an oral
communication where the officer is party to the communication and where the initial
parties to the communication have been given proper notification of the recording.
DEFINITIONS
Enforcement - Any encounter between an officer and a member of the public in which there is a
potential for, the likelihood of or certainty of some type of official law enforcement
action including, but not limited to, a call for service or an on-view intervention: a
field stop or traffic stop; a stop and frisk; the issuance of a criminal or traffic citation;
an arrest; a search (either consensual, probable cause based or incidental to an
arrest); during prisoner transport.
A law enforcement encounter does not mean a casual greeting given to the public
or an encounter in which a member of the public seeks information such as
directions or other general information from an officer.
Investigative - Inquiries by CPD members in response to a call for service, or self-initiated actions
with a citizen/s to obtain information related to their actions, on-going events, or
historical incidents.
POLICY
It is the policy of the Centreville Police Department that uniform personnel who are issued a BWC
shall wear and activate the BWC when such use is appropriate to the proper performance of their
official duties. The use of the BWC shall be in compliance with this policy and all local, state, and
federal laws. Personnel may only utilize issued BWC devices while on-duty. The use of non-issued
BWC device at any time is strictly prohibited. Violations of this policy may result in disciplinary
action.
I. PROCEDURES
General
i) Police personnel who are assigned BWCs must complete an agency approved and/or
provided training program to ensure proper use and operations. Additional training may
be required at periodic intervals to ensure the continued effective use and operation of
the equipment, proper calibration and performance, and to incorporate changes,
updates, or other revisions in policy and equipment.
ii) BWCs will only be used for official purposes.
iii) BWC devices are individually issued and assigned to personnel. Officers will only use the
device assigned to them.
iv) BWC’s are to be fully charged prior to the beginning of each shift or tour of duty.
v) Personnel equipped with and wearing a BWC shall keep it powered on at all times while
on duty and shall adhere to the activation policy contained in this document.
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vi) The activation policy contained in this document applies only to personnel equipped
with a BWC and does not place additional requirements on the duties of non-equipped
personnel.
vii) To provide the most consistent view, the BWC shall be attached to the front of the
uniform shirt or outer vest carrier at approx. the center of the chest with the top of the
BWC even with the top of the uniform pockets.
A. Testing
i) Prior to the beginning of each shift, the assigned agency member shall perform a
function test of the BWC in accordance with the manufacturer’s recommendations and
agency policy.
B. Malfunctions
i) Upon discovering a BWC malfunction, agency members shall promptly report the
malfunction to a supervisor or other appropriate authority in accordance with agency
policy regarding malfunctions. Personnel shall also notify the Queen Anne’s County
Department of Emergency Services “QADES” (Centreville Police Dispatch) via police radio
that their assigned BWC is inoperable.
C. Mandatory Activation of the BWC
Subject to paragraph (iii) below, officers shall begin recording with their BWCs in the
below circumstances unless doing so would be unsafe, impossible, or impractical. If
officers are unable to begin recording with the BWC due to circumstances making it
unsafe, impossible, or impractical to do so, officers shall begin recording with the BWC at
the first reasonable opportunity to do so.
i) At the initiation of a call for service, or when involved in any activity that is investigative
or enforcement in nature, or an encounter between the officer and a member of the
public that is investigative or enforcement in nature; and
ii) During any encounter that becomes confrontational after initial contact.
iii) When victims, witnesses or other individuals wish to make a statement or share
information, but refuse to do so while being recorded, or request that the camera be
turned off, officers may turn off the BWC in order to obtain the statement or
information. If the encounter begins when the BWC is not actively recording, the
Centreville Police Officer may, but is not required to, temporarily activate the BWC for
the sole purpose of documenting the person’s refusal to be recorded.
iv) When not otherwise prohibited by law or agency policy, officers may begin recording
with their BWC in circumstances when they determine that doing so would be beneficial
to the public interest.
v) If an officer fails to activate the BWC, fails to record the entire contact, or interrupts the
recording, the officer shall document why a recording was not made, was interrupted, or
was terminated.
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D. Prohibited Activation
A Centreville Police Officer shall not activate a camera to record:
i) Agency personnel during routine administrative activities; or
ii) Non-work related personal activities; or
iii) In Court Facilities and Courtrooms, except with the express permission of the Local
Administrative Judge or presiding judge, according to MD. Rule 16-208; or
iv) Encounters with undercover officers or confidential informants; or
v) In any location where individuals have a reasonable expectation of privacy, such as a
restroom or locker room.
E. Ending a Recording
Once recording with a BWC has been initiated, officers shall not end the recording until:
i) The event or encounter has fully concluded; or
ii) The officer leaves the scene and anticipates no further involvement in the event; or
iii) A supervisor or agency policy has authorized that a recording may cease because the
officer is no longer engaged in a related enforcement or investigative activity; or
iv) When victims, witnesses or other individuals wish to make a statement or share
information but refuse to do so while being recorded, or request that the camera be
turned off, officers may turn off the BWC in order to obtain a statement or information.
F. Notification
i) Except as otherwise exempted by law, a Centreville Police Officer shall notify, as soon as
is practicable, the individual that the individual is being recorded, unless it is unsafe,
impractical, or impossible to do so.
ii) The notice provision is satisfied even if another individual becomes a party to the
communication after the initial notice has been provided.
G. Confidentiality
i) Leased or purchased BWC equipment and all recordings are the property of the
Centreville Police Department, and only BWC equipment approved by the Centreville
Police Department shall be worn.
ii) Except as authorized by agency policy, copying, releasing, altering, erasing or allowing
unauthorized viewing of an agency video recording (or portion thereof) is prohibited and
may subject an officer to disciplinary action.
H. Required Storage and Maintenance of Recordings
i) Prior to the conclusion of an officer’s tour of duty and after uploading the BWC footage,
he will enter an Incident Number under the Title Field of any video footage for the
following situations:
 Every arrest that occurs;
 Any action that results in criminal or civil charges being placed;
 Any situation where physical force was used;
 Any situation that becomes confrontational.
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ii) BWC footage will be uploaded at the end of every shift/tour of duty unless otherwise
directed by a Supervisor.
iii) Personnel are strictly prohibited from sharing any BWC log-in information or passwords.
iv) Access to any BWC data will be done only by means of an officer's own credentials
furnished by the BWC Coordinator and only by means of the authorized BWC software.
v) Accessing, copying or disseminating files for non-law enforcement purposes is strictly
prohibited unless authorized by the Chief of Police. All downloads or copies of BWC footage
must be authorized by the Chief of Police.
I. Review of Recordings
BWC data may be reviewed by department personnel for purposes of;
a) Complaint investigation and resolution
b) Administrative investigations
c) Pursuant to Early Warning System notification
d) Training
e) Performance review documentation
f) Report writing or preparation of other official documents
g) Court preparation
h) Review of prosecution evidence
i) Victim/witness/suspect statements
j) Crime scenes
k) Statement of charges
l) Administrative investigations
m) Incident critique
n) Maryland Public Information Act (MPIA) requests
o) Policy compliance
p) Disclosures required by law
1) BWC data may be reviewed by the following non-agency personnel upon proper request,
submitted to and approved by the BWC Coordinator or Chief of Police:
i. Members of the State's Attorney Office or U.S. Attorney's Office, or Attorney General's
Office.
ii. Legal Counsel representing the Town of Centreville.
iii. Members of the credentialed media, by written request.
iv. By any legitimate judicial process, such as subpoena duces tecum.
v. By any member of the public through proper legal authority or Maryland Public
Information Act request.
A) A BWC recording of a constitutionally protected activity may not be used to identify persons
present at the activity who are not suspected of being engaged in illegal activity or in need of
assistance.
B) The stored video and audio data from a body worn camera may not:
i. be used to create a database or pool of mug shots;
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ii. be used as fillers in photo arrays; or
iii. be searched using facial or voice recognition software.
C) This subsection does not prohibit the Centreville Police Department from using recognition
software to analyze the recording of a particular incident when a supervisory law
enforcement officer has reason to believe that a specific suspect or person in need of
assistance may be subject of a particular recording.
D) As long as reviewing of a BWC recording, as determined by the Attorney General or local
States Attorney does not impact the integrity of an investigation or negatively impact a
criminal Investigation, the recording may be reviewed by medical or mental health
professionals consulted by the law enforcement agency for the limited purpose of
addressing the officer's medical or mental health needs resulting from a critical incident.
E) Civilians or unauthorized personnel shall not be permitted to review BWC recordings at the
scene.
J. Retention of Records
i. The CPD is the owner of all BWC footage and shall retain the unedited original
version of all BWC footage. The BWC vendor shall maintain a log detailing any time
BWC footage is viewed, for what length of time, by whom, and shall document any
copying or editing of the footage.
ii. CPD shall retain BWC footage for 3 years or at the discretion of the Chief of Police.
Footage deemed inconsequential by the Chief of Police, may be deleted sooner.
iii. Personnel are explicitly prohibited from tampering, editing, and/or copying data
stored on the BWC and the hosted storage repository
iv. Unauthorized dissemination of BWC recordings may result in disciplinary action.
K. Supervisor Inspection Responsibilities
Among the other supervisory duties detailed in this order, supervisors, who are in the direct chain of
command, will also conduct regular inspections with their subordinates.
i. Supervisors will inspect all officers under their command. The inspection will be
conducted at least once a month, and will include the review of one video per
officer. The purpose of the review is to aid the Supervisor in completing
performance evaluations. The Supervisor will detail this information in their
monthly report that is submitted through the chain of command detailing the date,
the BWC file number and the name of the member reviewed.
L. Reporting Requirements
i. Officers will state in any written report of any charging document, investigative
report or supplement if BWC evidence exists.
M. Chief of Police
i. The Chief of Police, or his designee, has the final authority regarding duplications,
redaction, release, and deletion of recordings.
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