Page 36 - TPA Journal May - June 2018
P. 36
DATE: March 22, 2018
TO: Peter Hermosa, Emily Taylor
FROM: Cris Andersen
SUBJECT: Special Report: 5 Things Every LEO Should Know About Access to Recorded Data
Brothers and sisters in law enforcement, Because recordings of police activity so often
reflect more accuracy than the human memory
Long before body cameras became standard can provide, especially memory affected by criti-
equipment for American peace officers there cal incident stress, its vital that all police officers,
were dashboard cameras and cameras monitoring their union representatives, and their attorneys
the prisoner transport compartments of police know the officers rights to review audio/video
vehicles. Before that there were cellular tele- recordings before being compelled to issue an
phone cameras and store and parking lot surveil- oral or written statement about an incident
lance cameras before them. There are eyes in the theyre involved in.
sky everywhere and all our actions are subject to
capture, review, and intense scrutiny by the pub- On March 19, 2018 Texas Attorney General Ken
lic, our internal review processes, and the Paxton issued opinion number KP-0185 regard-
Department of Justice. The outcry and public ing which body-worn camera footage an officer
demand for all peace officers to wear body cam- may review before issuing a statement about an
eras is the result of a misguided belief there incident he/she was involved in. My article title-
exists a war waged against the public by throngs don 5 Things Every LEO Should Know About
of unprofessional, unsupervised, and unaccount- Access to Recorded Data discusses far more than
able police officers nationwide. Nothing could be which police body-worn camera footage an offi-
farther from the truth and the results of most cer has the right to review and I hope the infor-
internal review of police actions, initiated by an mation to follow will assist you in understanding
uninformed public, are diametrically opposite your rights as the Courts and our esteemed
from what theyve been led to believe body Attorney General view them.
camera recordings exonerate police officers far
more frequently than not. Conversely, the same Texas Occupations Code #1701.655Ordering a
recordings catch members of the public fabricat- 12-hour Push Package Is the regulation which
ing stories in efforts to use cameras as a weapon requires specified law enforcement agencies to
to deter police actions or negotiate plea deals. adopt policies addressing several issues about the
32 www.texaspoliceassociation.com • 866-997-8282 Texas Police Journal
