Senate OKs bill to clear way for more police body cameras

tion approved by the Pennsylvania state Senate on Wednesday seeks to clear legal hurdles for police departments to expand their officers’ use of body cameras, and it gives departments the discretion to refuse public requests for copies of audio or video recordings by officers.

The bill, which passed 47-1 after brief comments on the Senate floor, would add Pennsylvania to a growing list of states that are setting statewide policy over the collection of audio and video by officers, including body cameras and dashboard cameras.

Perhaps the most controversial aspect is the bill’s treatment of public access.

It exempts recordings from requests under Pennsylvania’s open-records law, although a court could still order the release of a police recording. The bill also sets limits on requests. In particular, it provides a window of just 20 days after the incident in which to submit a request for a copy of an officer’s audio or video recording.

It is grounds for a denial if a police department or prosecutor’s office decides the recording could contain evidence in a criminal matter or the identity of a confidential informant or victim, and that it cannot safely protect that information by removing or obscuring it. It also prevents public access to recordings made inside a law enforcement facility, such as a police department.

A similar bill died in the House last year after the Senate passed it in the legislative session’s final days.

The sponsor, Judiciary Committee Chairman Stewart Greenleaf, R-Montgomery, said the measure would help promote the use of body cameras and transparency in incidents involving camera-wearing officers. Several Democrats who backed the measure for that reason also criticized some of its elements. Senate Minority Leader Jay Costa, DAllegheny, said he hoped the House would change the bill to make the recordings more publicly accessible, including recordings inside law enforcement facilities.