7.136 Body Worn Cameras

Question 1

What is the overall policy in regards to Body Worn Cameras?

Answer 1

Body Worn Cameras (BWC) are a valuable tool for promoting professionalism, public trust, and transparency in policing by recording citizen contacts with officers. BWCs are also effective in capturing video and audio evidence for use in criminal prosecutions and internal investigations. In its utilization of BWCs, the department respects the legitimate privacy interests of citizens.

Question 2

Which section issues body worn cameras (BWC) and which section manages the program?

Answer 2

1. The System Administration Unit (SAU) issues the BWC and the program is managed by then Digital Technology Section (DTS).

Question 3

Which department members and sections are issued body worn cameras?

Answer 3

1. Uniformed officers and sergeants regularly assigned to :
   a. The Community Policing Division
   b. The Tourist Safety Division
   c. SWAT
   d. The Gang Enforcement Team
   e. K9
   f. Headquarters Security Detail
2. Plainclothes officers and sergeants assigned to the Major Violators and Narcotics Bureau.
3. Any employee who transfers or is promoted to another assignment based on a TPAN which
   requires the employee to wear a BWC.

Question 4

Which sections are responsible for developing and conducting training for the use of the body-worn camera?

Answer 4

“All training related to BWCs will be developed and conducted jointly by the Systems Administration Unit and the Organizational Development Bureau.”

Question 5

How long is the window of footage that is captured by the BWC before it is activated?

Answer 5

30 seconds

Question 6

If an officer’s BWC malfunctions or becomes damaged, what are the responsibilities of the officer?

Answer 6

1. Notify a supervisor.

2. Send an email to SAU, documenting the malfunction or damage to the BWC.

Question 7

What is the policy of wearing and/or using the BWC inside the jail?

Answer 7

“Police officers wearing a BWC may be assigned to work overtime in a jail facility. Due to the differing privacy requirements, officers will not wear or operate their camera while working inside the jail.”

Question 8

What are the unauthorized uses of the BWC?

Answer 8

BWCs will only be used during law enforcement operational duties. The BWC shall not be used to record:

1. Follow-up investigative briefings.
2. Large scale events (i.e. New Year’s Eve)
3. Any telephone call or personal conversation between other department employees without the
   recorded employee’s knowledge.
4. Non-work-related activity where a reasonable expectation of privacy exists (i.e bathroom, locker
   room)
5. Inside a detention facility
6. Administrative matters, training, shift briefings, management meetings, professional
   development conversations, work performance counseling, disciplinary processes, or bargaining
   and contractual matters.
7. Encounters with undercover officers or confidential informants.

Question 9

Under what circumstances are officers mandated to activate their BWC?

Answer 9

Officers will record in the following circumstances and inform individuals that they are being recorded as soon as it is safe to do so:

1. All calls for service involving contact with citizens or suspects
2. Officer-initiated activities (i.e. pedestrian and vehicle stops)
3. Any citizen contact that becomes adversarial
4. Witness, victim and suspect interviews
5. Detentions or investigations pursuant to an arrest
6. Searches of persons, vehicles or structures
7. While transporting prisoners
8. After the occurrence of an officer-involved traffic accident
9. When third party-sourced video is shown to officers (consent must be granted)
10. When driving Code 3
11. Any involvement in a foot or vehicle pursuit
12. When field testing narcotics, counting money, documenting high value property or returning
    property back to the owner
13. K9, Traffic and resident officers responding to a call will activate within two miles of arrival

Question 10

When are officers allowed to deactivate their BWC?

Answer 10

1. When the officer has cleared from the scene and is no longer assigned to the event; AND
2. The officer has discontinued contact with (and is no longer in proximity to) the subject.

• Officers will also deactivate their BWC on static crime scenes when directed by a supervisor or investigative personnel. Officers will not record briefings with investigative units, any discussion about charges against a subject or activities at a command post.

Question 11

When advised of a BWC malfunction, what are the supervisor responsibilities? (4)

Answer 11

1. Direct the officer to remove the camera from service and place it on the dock for upload.
2. Issue a new BWC kit (camera, wire and battery) from the station spares.
3. Assign the new BWC to the officer in Evidence.com.
4. Notify the Systems Administration Unit regarding malfunctions to discuss the remedy.

Question 12

What are the two reasons that allow supervisors to access their officers’ BWC recordings?

Answer 12

1. Investigative purposes
2. Allegations of misconduct

• When accessing the video, the viewer must document in the notes section of the specific video the reason why it was viewed.

Question 13

Per the BWC policy, what are the supervisor’s responsibilities when on scene, investigating a citizen complaint or an application of reportable force?

Answer 13

1. Interview complainant (recorded)
2. Interview subject officer (not recorded)
3. Review the subject officer’s BWC (not in the presence of the complainant)
4. Review BWC video of each involved officer.

• If the citizen complaint appears to be valid, document that BWC was reviewed in the narrative of the SOC. If the citizen complaint is not in violation of policy or law, document that BWC was reviewed in the narrative of the Citizen Contact Report in Blue Team.

Question 14

According to the BWC policy, after an officer involved shootings or the use of deadly force, how are the BWCs of the involved officers handled?

Answer 14

1. Involved officers and/or any supervisor or representative will not view the BWC recording prior
   to FIT or CIRT viewing the video, except when exigent circumstances exist.
2. FIT detectives will be responsible for collecting and securing all BWCs from involved officers
   upon arriving on scene. FIT or CIRT will be responsible for uploading the video.
3. Involved officer will be allowed to view their own BWC recording prior to a scene walkthrough
   and any subsequent questioning by FIT or CIRT.

Question 15

Under what circumstances can Internal Affairs and/or Criminal Investigations review BWC recordings? And to whom can these recordings be shown?

Answer 15

When the recordings are part of an internal investigation. They can be shown to citizens, arrestees and violators who are part of the investigation.

Question 16

If Training wants to use a BWC recording for training purposes, who must approve the request?

Answer 16

The Office of General Counsel

Question 17

What are the retention periods for BWC recordings?

Answer 17

1. Automatic Assignment (Disposition Based)
   a. Arrest 10 years
   b. Citation 5 years
   c. Report Only 1 year
   d. Minimum Retention 1 year
2. Manual Hold Assignments
   a. Long-Term (OIS, S/A, etc) 20 years
   b. Mid-Term (Risk Managment, Legals, 401s). 7 years
   c. Short-Term (non-BWC evidence). 4 years
   d. Indefinite (Homicide, Pending, NPRA, Training) None
   e. Academy Training. 6 months
   f. Administrative Function (Testing Process). 18 months

• Any recording not labeled will be held for 90 days.

Question 18

Per the BWC policy, what is the minimum activation compliance rate?

Answer 18

“A percent of assigned time recorded compliance rate threshold will be established each month based on the top 90% rates of users listed on the BWC APR report for each month”

Question 19

What must a supervisor do when an officer falls below the minimum activation compliance rate?

Answer 19

“The supervisor must conduct a compliance audit by reviewing compliance reports, videos and CAD reports for the period where a matching video was not auto or manually labeled. The supervisor will document video discrepancies and whether the user complied with or violated policy. Supervisors will address issues in adhering to the established minimum compliance rate.”

Question 20

What is the overall policy in regards to Body Worn Cameras?

Answer 20

Body Worn Cameras (BWC) are a valuable tool for promoting professionalism, public trust, and transparency in policing by recording citizen contacts with officers. BWCs are also effective in capturing video and audio evidence for use in criminal prosecutions and internal investigations. In its utilization of BWCs, the department respects the legitimate privacy interests of citizens.

Question 21

The Digital Technology Section (DTS) is responsible for the management of LVMPDs BWC program. The Systems Adminstration Unit issues BWCs to:

1. Uniformed officers and sergeants regularly assigned to:a.b.c. SWAT
   d. The Gang Enforcement Team (GET)
   e. K9
   f. Headquarters Security Detail
2. Plainclothes officers and sergeants assigned to Major Violators and Narcotics Bureau (MVNB).

Answer 21

a. The Community Policing Division (CDP)

b. The Tourist Safety Division (TSD)

Question 22

How will officers and supervisors assigned a BWC wear the device while in uniform?

Answer 22

Officers and supervisors assigned a BWC will wear the device while in uniform.

1. The BWCs will be worn on the collar, epaulette, eyewear, or head mount as instructed during BWC training.
2. Officers will wear their BWC on the non-weapon bearing shoulder to allow for firing a long gun (shotgun or rifle). This will ensure, under most circumstances, the BWC has an optimum or unobstructed forward view.
3. If the BWC shifts and is no longer recording an unobstructed view, officers will reposition the BWC, once aware, and it is safe to do so to maintain an optimum field of vision.

Question 23

Officers must notify a supervisor when they become aware there is a malfunction or damage to the BWC, what must a supervisor do?

Answer 23

They must document, replace if needed, re-issue from Armory, send email confirming the malfunction and submit to SAU.

Question 24

What are the supervisor responsibilities for the BWC?

Answer 24

Supervisor Responsibilities:

1. Ensure the officers utilize the BWC in accordance with this policy.
2. Ensure officers wear their BWC in a manner to capture the optimum view of their surroundings.
3. When advised of a BWC malfunction:
   a. Direct the officer to remove the camera from service and place it on the dock for upload.
   b. Issue a new BWC kit (camera, wire, and battery/controller) from the station spares in accordance with check-out procedures.
   c. Assign the new BWC to the officer in Evidence.com.
   d. Notify the Systems Adminstration Unit regarding malfunctions to discuss the remedy.
4. Retrieve an officer’s BWC and upload it by the end of the shift if the officer is unable to do so.

Question 25

When will supervisors access an officers BWC?

Answer 25

Supervisors will only access the BWC video for investigative purposes outlined in policy (e.g., complaints, uses of force, vehicle pursuits, etc.) or an allegation of misconduct. In each case, the supervisor, or person accessing the video, will document in the notes section of the specific video reviewed and the reason of the inspection.

Question 26

When a supervisor receives a complaint and the officer is equipped with a BWC what will he do?

Answer 26

When advised of a complaint where the incident may be recorded on BWC:

1. Handle receipts of complaints in accordance with LVMPD 8.330, Maintenance of Values and Ethics.
2. Interview the complaint before reviewing any available BWC video, when possible.
3. Access the video on scene through a mobile device or any MDT. A supervisor will not review the recording in the presence of the complainant.
4. Record the interview with the complainant on BWC. Supervisors not wearing a BWC should consider having another field supervisor record.
5. Supervisors will not record the subject or witness officer during the investigation.
6. If the allegation appears to be valid, document this in the narrative of the SOC the BWC video is available, was reviewed, and is justification for the SOC.
7. If the allegation is not a violation of policy or law, document this in Blue Team by a Citizen Contact Report the BWC video is available and was reviewed.
8. If a supervisor has probable cause, based on BWC video, to believe a reporting citizen is in violation of NRS 207.280, False Reporting of Crimes Unlawful, notify the Criminal Investigations Section, Internal Affairs Bureau (IAB) on-call supervisor for further direction.

Question 27

When investigating the application of reportable force, what will a supervisor do?

Answer 27

When investigating the application of reportable force (except use of deadly force; see LVMPD 3.110, Use of Force, “Post Use of Force Investigations”):

1. Access the video on scene in the presence of the involved officer(s). Officers will only review their own video evidence.
2. Record the interview of the subject citizen of BWC.
3. Do not record the subject officer during the investigation.
4. Review the video with each involved officer as soon as practical prior to the Use of Force report being completed.
5. Ensure the review of the BWC video is documented in the narrative of the investigative comments and verify the video is labeled and categorized in accordance with this policy.
6. In circumstances when force is used by a specialized unit not wearing BWC and the incident is captured by other department members equipped with BWC, the supervisor of the specialized unit is responsible for viewing relevant video and ensuring the recording is properly labeled and retained.

Question 28

When investigating officer involved shootings or deadly force, what will a supervisor do?

Answer 28

When investigating officer involved shootings or deadly force:

1. Involved personnel and/or any supervisor or representative will not view the BWC recording prior to Force Investigative Team (FIT) or Critical Incident Review Team (CIRT) viewing the footage, except when exigent circumstances exist.
2. Involved officers or witness officers will be allowed to view their own BWC recording prior to a scene walkthrough and subsequent FIT/CIRT statement.
3. The supervisor taking the involved officer’s Public Safety Statement will also ensure the BWCs are not used to record any part of the officer’s Public Safety Statement.
4. FIT personnel will be responsible for collecting and securing the BWC from all involved and witness officers upon arrival at the scene. FIT or CIRT is responsible for upload of video into Evidence.com.

Question 29

The BWC Activation Performance Rate (APR) Summary Report is a tool to verify compliance with policy. What will a supervisor do if an officer falls below compliance standards?

Answer 29

When an officer falls below the top 90% rates of users, a mandatory audit will be triggered. Supervisors will complete the compliance audit by reviewing compliance reports, videos, and CAD reports for the period where a matching video was not auto or manually labeled. The supervisor will document video discrepancies and whether the user complied with or violated policy. Supervisors will address performance issues in adhering to the established minimum compliance rate.

Question 30

When an officer falls below a specified BWC compliance percentage, the sergeant will follow an pre-outlined procedure. What is the procedure?

Answer 30

For each event reviewed during the audit process, if justification is for the compliance issue, the audit will cease for that event:

1. Review officer’s Detailed APR report for any unmatched videos.
2. Review CAD for officer dispatched and officer cleared times which align with any identified unmatched videos.
3. Review Evidence.com for video evidence without an ID# with in the specified CAD timeframes.
4. Review upload times for any uploads which occurred 36 hours after recorded times.
5. Correct any unmatched evidence in Evidence.com by updating ID# with corresponding CAD event.
6. View all unmatched evidence which corresponds with the officer’s CAD times.
7. If clear BWC compliance policy violations are discovered during the audit, document the issue in a Contact Report. If the problem continues after being documented in a Contact Report, consider opening a Statement of Complaint.