Mpls. police oversight commission concerned about draft body camera policy

A police oversight commission in Minneapolis for the first time commented publicly about a proposed body camera policy Tuesday, and was critical of the draft that the Minneapolis Police Department put together.

Public outcry over police accountability has led some law enforcement departments to equip officers with wearable video cameras.

The draft policy tells officers to turn the cameras on in everyday traffic stops, suspicious person calls and searches. But officers may decide to turn them off when protecting accident scenes, or to make a victim feel more comfortable to give a statement.

But it's not clear what sort of control members of the public have over camera use.

That's a major concern for Andrea Brown. The criminal defense attorney and chair of the Minneapolis Police Conduct Oversight Commission said the policy is not in line with the Fifth Amendment.

"I don't think it's appropriate for citizens to be freely giving their consent just by saying we want body cams," she said.

Officers would use their discretion to stop recording anytime, and the draft policy doesn't say what happens to officers who violate it.

Jenny Singleton, another member of the oversight commission, said the policy should carry a presumption of guilt.

"We want to make sure that if the camera isn't on that there is a documented reason that it's not on," she said. "And if there is not that very clear documented reason that it's not on, there is a presumption against the officer that there was some type of misconduct that did happen."

But Minneapolis deputy police chief Medaria Arradondo said police officers catch people at their most vulnerable. He told the commission that officers should be able to decide when to stop recording in situations like sexual assault.

"We believe it's important for the officers to have that discretion. To say 'you know what I'm talking to a child, or I'm talking to a victim of domestic violence or I'm talking to someone in a medical situation at 3 a.m. and they're not properly clothed,' " he said.

Arradondo said the policy is still evolving. He said the department will seek public input on the draft before a final version goes to the City Council. A council committee has approved a five-year $4 million contract with Taser International for cameras and other equipment. The city hopes to begin equipping all officers in May.