4/298 BODY WORN VIDEO SYSTEMS 4/298.10 PURPOSE. The purpose of portable video recording systems or body worn video (BWV) is to provide an accurate audio and video recording of field activities in the course of official police duties. 4/298.20 POLICY. The Beverly Hills Police Department is conducting a pilot program for designated Department personnel to test the feasibility and effectiveness of implementing a BWV program. The pilot program is anticipated to end in 2015 or 2016. This policy is intended to provide officers with instructions on when and how to use BWV during the pilot program. The Department recognizes that video images cannot always show the full story nor do video images capture an entire scene or the specific focus of the officer. The use of BWV does not reduce the requirement to provide thorough written documentation of an incident. Persons reviewing recordings must also be cautious before conclusions are reached about what the recordings show OVERVIEW. The BWV may be utilized to: 1. Collect evidence that can be used in the prosecution of criminal offenses. 2. Record contacts with the public in order to secure unbiased evidence in connection with investigations. 3. Allow for supervisory review to ensure that department policies and procedures are followed. 4. Capture footage that would be helpful for training. All recorded media, images, and audio from a BWV system are property of the Beverly Hills Police Department and shall not be copied, released, or disseminated in any form or manner outside the parameters of this policy without the expressed written consent of the Chief of Police, or his/her designee, or as otherwise required by law. Unauthorized use, duplication, and/or distribution of BWV files are prohibited. Personnel shall not make copies of any BWV file for their personal use and are prohibited from using a recording device such as a phone camera or secondary video camera to record BWV files. Use of BWV for any purpose other than in accordance with this policy is prohibited. All media, images, and audio captured by BWV are subject to state statutes and City policies regarding retention and release of public records, and discovery in criminal, civil, and administrative cases. 4/298.30 PROCEDURES. Prior to using a BWV, officers shall receive training on its proper operation and care as well as the Department's policy with respect to the use of the BWV. • BWV equipment should be used with reasonable care to ensure proper functioning. Equipment malfunctions shall be brought to the attention of the Special Projects Unit as soon as possible. Officers shall inspect and test BWV prior to each shift to verify proper functioning, including verifying sufficient memory and battery capacity, and shall notify their supervisor and the Special Projects Unit of any problems. • Officers shall position the camera on their body or uniform to facilitate optimum recording field of view. • Except as otherwise provided in this policy, officers shall activate their BWV to record all enforcement or investigative activity with the public. If an officer is unable to activate the BWV prior to initiating an enforcement or investigative activity, the officer shall activate the device as soon as it is practical and safe to do so. • There are many situations where the use of the BWV is appropriate. This policy is not intended to describe every possible circumstance. In addition to the required conditions, officers may activate the system any time they feel its use would be appropriate and/or valuable to document an incident or event. Except as otherwise permitted by this policy, once commenced, recordation of an incident or event shall not be discontinued until the incident or event has concluded, unless this policy would thereby be violated. • Officers are encouraged to inform individuals that they are being recorded; however, Officers are not required to obtain consent from members of the public when the officer is lawfully in the area where the recording is made. Officers have no obligation to stop recording in response to a citizen's request if the recording is pursuant to an investigation, arrest, lawful search, or circumstances clearly dictate that continued recording is necessary. Conversely, officers may evaluate the situation and, when appropriate, honor the citizen's request. The request to turn the camera off should be recorded, as well as the employee's response. • Deactivation of the BWV shall only occur when: o The event has concluded; o Victim and/or witness contact has concluded; o All persons stopped have been released; Page 31 of 35 o Once an arrestee has been placed into a vehicle to be transported to a detention facility. However, if the employee transporting the arrestee to the detention facility has a BWV, the employee shall keep the BWV activated until custody of the individual is transferred to the detention facility. An officer shall have the latitude to terminate the recording when there is no likelihood of force being used or anything else of evidentiary value occurring. It shall be deemed a violation of this policy for an officer to fail to activate the device or intentionally terminate a recording in order to commit a violation of law or department policy. B. Officers shall not edit, alter, erase, duplicate, copy, share, or otherwise distribute in any manner BWV images or BWV information without the approval of the Chief of Police or his/her designee, except as otherwise required by law. C. Officers shall be allowed to review the recordings from their BWV. To help ensure accuracy and consistency, officers are encouraged to review recordings prior to preparing reports. a. Note: If the employee is giVing a formal statement about a use of force or if the employee is the subject of a disciplinary investigation, the employee shall: b. (1) Have the option of reviewing the recordings in the presence of the employee's attorney or labor representative; and c. (2) have the right to review recordings from other BWV capturing the employee's image or voice during the underlying incident. D. BWV shall not be used to record: a. Personal conversations of or between another department member or employee without the recorded members/employee's knowledge or permission. b. Encounters with known undercover officers or informants. c. When an employee is on break or is otherwise engaged in personal activities. d. A. E. In any location where individuals have a reasonable expectation of privacy, such as a restroom, locker room, or break room. e. A patient who is not a criminal suspect during a medical or psychological evaluation by a clinician or similar professional, or during treatment. When recording in hospitals or other medical facilities, officers shall be careful to avoid recording persons other than the suspect. f. Courtroom proceedings unless permission from the Court has been first obtained. g. In any location where prohibited by law. Officers shall only use Department issued BWV equipment. Personally owned video recorders are not authorized to record enforcement or investigative activities involving members of the public. 4/298.40 DIGITALLY RECORDED INCIDENT EVIDENCE AND STORAGE. All files from BWV shall be uploaded to secure storage, in their entirety, at the end of the employee's shift. Each file shall contain information related to the date, camera identifier, and assigned employee. All files from body-worn cameras shall be securely stored in accordance with the City's records retention schedule. If a report is made concerning an event or incident recorded by BWV, the report shall reflect that BWV was taken. It is not the intent of the Department to review BWV files obtained during this pilot program for the purpose of general performance review, for routine preparation of performance reports or evaluations, or to discover policy violations. Supervisors and Professional Standards personnel may access BWV for administrative investigations. Other than periodic supervisory reviews to ensure that equipment is functioning properly, the scope of the review of BWV for personnel purposes shall be limited to the incident giving rise to a specific complaint against the employee. Inadvertent discovery of violations of Department policy or procedure during this review shall require the supervisor to articulate the purpose of expanding the scope of review, consistent with any applicable MOU or labor agreement. Page 32 of 35 Requests to delete any portion of a recording from a BWV (e.g., in the event of a privileged or personal recording) must be submitted in writing to the Chief of Police, and shall be processed and acted on in compliance with any and all applicable state laws. Recordings from BWV relating to a criminal investigation may be shown for training purposes upon completion of a criminal case. All such use shall be with the approval of the Chief of Police or his/her designee. The Records and Jail Manager is the Custodian of Records and shall maintain custody of the BWV files. BWV files stored on servers will be accessed and retrieved only by the Custodian of Records or his/her designee. Such images may only be reproduced, distributed, or shown to other persons in accordance with this policy 4/298 and the procedures set forth in the Clerical Operations section of the Department Manual. Videos will not be released outside of the Department without the approval of the Chief of Police or his/her designee, and only then in accordance with established procedure and in compliance with the California Public Records Act and other applicable laws. 4/298.50 POLICY EXCEPTIONS. The use of the BWV equipment and compliance with this policy is mandatory for the designated officers in this pilot period. It is recognized that it may not always be feasible to activate the BWV as required by this policy; however, those occurrences should be the exception rather than the rule. Should this occur, the employee shall notify the Watch Commander of the circumstances of the incident as soon as practical, or in any event, prior to the completion of the patrol shift at issue. Page 33 of 35