Supes OK funding for body-worn cameras

Board also ends ICE transfers

Following a number of heated debates with Sheriff Alex Villanueva on funding in recent months, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors approved the first year of funding for body-worn cameras in their regular Tuesday meeting.

This comes after Villanueva announced that, come October, Sheriff’s Department deputies would start receiving body-worn cameras through an agreement with Axon Enterprise Inc.

“This is a big step in the direction of ensuring the accountability of our communities, and frankly it’s what they deserve,” Supervisor Kathryn Barger, whose 5th District includes the Santa Clarita Valley, said during the meeting. “It has certainly been longawaited, and we cannot

afford to delay any longer.”

Nevertheless, both Barger and Supervisor Janice Hahn, of the 4th District, who authored the motion together, said there’s a lot more to do in regards to police reform.

“Let’s move forward today with implementing body-worn cameras in our own county Sheriff’s Department, but let’s not stop there,” Hahn said. “This needs to be accompanied by real accountability (and) real reform.”

The motion authorizes $25.5 million, $12.3 million in ongoing and $13.2 million in one-time funding, to be given to the Sheriff’s Department, covering the cost of the body-worn cameras for the fiscal year 2020-21, which includes costs for the technology and for running the system backend.

The camera program is estimated to equip 5,200 deputies and security officers with devices over two years, slated to be released first to a group of five stations: Century, Industry, Lakewood, Lancaster and West Hollywood. The SCV Sheriff’s Station is not in the first group. The next phase is set to include 10 additional stations beginning Jan. 1.

Other motions

The Board of Supervisors also approved a motion that ends transfers to Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials in L.A. County, without a judicial warrant.

Earlier this month, Villanueva made similar moves, making permanent the temporary hold on the transfer of those being held on a civil immigration detainer he had put in place at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. During the meeting, he called the motion a “very good step forward,” though he said there is still work to be done.

The motion is set to prohibit the use of any county resources to facilitate transfers, unless in accordance with a judicial warrant, judicial probable cause determination or otherwise required by federal or state law.