Page 37 - TPA Journal May - June 2018
P. 37
wearing of body cameras. Subsection N. requires Vendor Managed Inventory Packages or
any law enforcement agency receiving grant VMI In its broad sense the word any may
money for their body camera program or other- also mean all, each or any one of each.
wise operates a body-worn camera program, to When applied to TOC #1701.655 and the
comply with sub-section 1701.655(b)(5) by enti- right of an officer to review any recording
tling an officer to see any recording of an inci- of an incident involving said officer, any and
dent involving an officer before the officer is all recordings of the incident, regardless of
required to make a statement regarding the inci- what recording device captured them, can be
dent. Two common misperceptions among law subject to review by the officer before he is
enforcement administrators are addressed here: compelled to give a statement. This includes
(1) Any agency operating a body-worn camera cameras worn by other officers on the scene,
program, not just those receiving grant monies to security camera footage from nearby busi-
fund it, must comply with TOC #1701.655 and nesses and homes, and if subject to subpoena,
(2) The involved officers have the right to review the recordings captured on personal commu-
any recording of an incident theyre involved in, nication devices. According to the Court, if
and not merely those images captured by their the subject of the recording are actions
camera.When local officials identify a potential involving an officer, said officer has the right
or actual problem they believe poses a large- to review them under TOC 1701.655. Once a
scale threat to the health of their population, they specific, confirmed biological agent is deter-
will notify state emergency management divi- mined to be the cause of your problem, the
sions disaster district chairman, who will notify 12-hour push package will be supplemented
the Governor if the problem will overwhelm the by a VMI comprised of pharmaceuticals
local jurisdictions capabilities. The Governor delivered from multiple sources. Everything
will request deployment of a SNS 12-hour push contained within a 12-hour package is in the
pack directly from the Center for Disease VMI; however, much more of the medicine
Control. As previously mentioned the push pack- needed as anecdotes for the specific biologic
age will arrive within 12 hours of the federal are also included. Assets from the VMI are
decision to deploy, and will occupy 130 cargo used to support an incident which exceeds the
containers weighing 50 tons. To properly receive, time capacity of the 12-hour push package or
stage, and store the push package, your facility to supplement specific items. The VMI are
will require a minimum of 10,000 square feet of extremely important because they contain
floor space. The package is pre-configured for doses of prophylaxis needed to accommodate
rapid identification of contents and ease of distri- larger exposed populations the 12-hour pack-
bution; however, your single biggest logistics age cannot. Imagine yourself as incident com-
issue is where to park and protect it. The time for mander in a disaster district populated with
planning on this is yesterday and remember, you 2.2 million people and your initial push pack-
may own this problem for 12 hours with only age had 350,000 doses of prophylaxis. Youll
your local medical facilities and capabilities to want that VMI sooner than later and you will
fall back on. have security issues! Additional logistics to
consider include where youll park the VMI
Kirby Lake Development, LTD v. Clear Lake supplies when they arrive. Planning for this
rd
Water Authority, 320 S.W. 3 , 829, 840 tier starts yesterday as well.
March/April 2018 www.texaspoliceassociation.com • 866-997-8282 33
