Sec. 3. Body-worn camera grants
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Title I of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 ( 42 U.S.C. 3711 et seq. ) is amended by adding at the end the following: From amounts made available to carry out this part, the Director of the Bureau of Justice Assistance may make grants to States, units of local government, and Indian tribes for the acquisition, operation, and maintenance of body-worn cameras for law enforcement officers. Grants awarded under this section shall be— distributed directly to the State, unit of local government, or Indian tribe; and used for the program described under section 3034.
The program described in this section is any program implemented by a grantee requiring the use of body-worn cameras by law enforcement officers in that jurisdiction, consistent with the following requirements: Any law enforcement officer who has regular contact with the general public shall be required to wear and, as appropriate, activate a body-worn camera. An officer who is not otherwise assigned body-worn cameras may be required to wear one in certain circumstances, including the following:
After receiving a specified number of complaints or disciplinary actions. When participating in a certain type of activity, such as SWAT operations. Body cameras should be worn on the officer’s chest or at eye level. An officer who activates the body-worn camera while on duty should be required to note the existence of the recording in the official incident report. An officer who wears body-worn cameras should be required to articulate their reasoning, on camera or in writing, if that officer fails to record an activity that is required by department policy to be recorded.
An officer is required to activate his or her body-worn camera when responding to all calls for service and during all law enforcement-related encounters and activities that occur while the officer is on duty traffic stops, arrests, searches, interrogations, investigations, and pursuits. Officers should also be required to activate the camera during the course of any encounter with the public that becomes adversarial after the initial contact. An officer shall inform any person who is being recorded by a body-worn camera when the person is being recorded unless doing so would be unsafe, impractical, or impossible.
Once activated, the body-worn camera shall remain in recording mode until the conclusion of an incident or encounter, the officer has left the scene, or a supervisor has authorized (on camera) that a recording may cease. Policies shall designate the officer as the person responsible for downloading recorded data from his or her body-worn camera. However, in certain clearly identified circumstances (including officer-involved shootings, in-custody deaths, or other incidents involving the officer that result in a person’s bodily harm or death), the officer’s supervisor should immediately take physical custody of the camera and should be responsible for downloading the data.
If the camera system does not have a system to track who accesses the recorded data, when, and for what purpose, grantees shall create an audit system that monitors who accesses recorded data, when, and for what purpose. Grantees may conduct forensic reviews to determine whether recorded data has been tampered with. Data shall be downloaded from the body-worn camera by the end of each shift in which the camera was used. Officers shall properly categorize and tag body-worn camera videos at the time they are downloaded.
Videos shall be classified according to the type of event or incident captured in the footage. When setting time frames for retention of data, grantees shall consider the following: State laws governing evidence retention. Departmental policies governing retention of other types of electronic records. The openness of the State’s public disclosure laws. The need to preserve footage to promote transparency. The length of time typically needed to receive and investigate citizen complaints.
The agency’s capacity for data storage. Data must be managed by a third party. To protect the security and integrity of data managed by a third party, a grantee shall use a reputable, experienced vendor, enter into a legal contract with the vendor that protects the agency’s data, ensure the system includes a built-in audit trail and reliable backup methods, and consult with legal advisors. An officer shall be permitted to review video footage of an incident in which they were involved, prior to making a statement about the incident.
A grantee’s internal audit unit, rather than the officer’s direct chain of command, should periodically conduct a random review of body-worn camera footage to monitor compliance with the program and assess overall officer performance. Grantee policies pertaining to body-worn cameras shall include specific measures for preventing unauthorized access or release of recorded data. Grantees shall have clear and consistent protocols for releasing recorded data externally to the public and the news media (or public disclosure policies).
Each such policy must be in compliance with any applicable State or Federal public disclosure laws. Body-worn camera training shall be required for all grantee personnel who may use or otherwise be involved with body-worn cameras. The grantee shall collect statistical data concerning body-worn camera usage, including when video footage is used in criminal prosecutions and internal affairs matters as well as when excessive force has been used. The grantee shall conduct periodic reviews of policies and protocols of the grantee pertaining to body-worn cameras.
Funds available under this part shall be awarded to each qualifying unit of local government with fewer than 100,000 residents. Any remaining funds available under this part shall be awarded to other qualifying applicants on a pro rata basis. The portion of the costs of a program provided by a grant under subsection
(a)may not exceed 50 percent. Any funds appropriated by Congress for the activities of any agency of an Indian tribal government or the Bureau of Indian Affairs performing law enforcement functions on any Indian lands may be used to provide the non-Federal share of a matching requirement funded under this subsection. The non-Federal share of payments made under this part may be made in cash or in-kind fairly evaluated, including planned equipment or services. .
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Sec. 3
Body-worn camera grants
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