Shooting raises concerns about body cameras

Mayor Andrew Ginther has publicly faulted Columbus police officer Adam Coy and another officer for not activating their body cameras before they confronted Andre Hill and Coy fatally shot him early Tuesday in the open garage door of a Northwest Side home.

Ginther has called forCoy’s termination for that infraction and criticized him and anunidentified femaleofficer for failing to render immediate aid to Hill, who died shortly after being taken to OhioHealth RiversideMethodist Hospital.

Ginther, police Chief Thomas Quinlan and others have viewed Coy’s inaction as an intentional disregard of police policy that requires camera activation when engaging with thepublic on serious matters.

But Jay McDonald, a former state Fraternal Order of Police president, and soonto-be Marion police chief, said it is not unheard of for officers to forget to activate their devices.

“Itwould be like if you left your house in the morning, but forgot your car keys,” McDonald said.

“I get the condemnation, that he doesn’thavehis body camera on,” saidMcDonald. “But in no way did that officer (Coy) get out of his car and think that he would be involved in a deadly force scenario (and intentionally not activate his camera).”

Columbus Division of Police policy requires that officers activate the cameras by pushing a button when calls become “enforcement actions” orbecomeadversarial. A feature on most cameras records 60 seconds of “look-back” video, but not audio, onceactivated. Aswith much of police work, discretion is required to determine when it is reasonable to activate.

AveteranColumbuspolice officer who now works for anotheragencysaidthatcamera policy is “ingrained” in officer training. Yet everyday encounters can turn deadly very quickly.

Asmore agencies are using bodycameras, policieswhich guide their use are evolving, McDonald said. And so are calls for reforming their use as evidence.

In Massachusetts, the American Civil Liberties Union wants courts to instruct juries to diminish or disregard testimony of officers who don’t activate body cameras.

In centralOhio, civil rights attorneyFredGittessaidcameras are already treated like other evidence in courtrooms, including motions on decisions “whether or not it’s admissible andwhat weight should be givento it.”

Gittessaidhewouldrecommend officers activate their cameras more frequently than a policy might require.