Denver, Colorado, is seeking to become one of the first major metropolitan areas to mandate police use of body cameras. However, the Denver police union has filed a lawsuit over the initiative, claiming that key provisions around the use of body cameras for off-duty police activities were not bargained. According to the
Denver Post:
The Denver Police Protective Association said in a news release it does not oppose officers wearing body cameras. But the union said the policy that was put in place in September is ill-conceived, and the union's lawsuit questions multiple aspects of the program, including how it will affect officers' workloads when wearing them on off-duty security jobs.
"An ill-conceived body camera program breeds distrust amongst community members and the officers expected to operate this important policing tool," the news release said. "Unfortunately, an ill-conceived body camera program is exactly what we face in the City of Denver."
The provision mandating that off-duty police officers wear body cameras while engaging in contract activities was contested during the creation of the law. The debate raises one more question about the tricky nature of accountability and workload for off-duty police work. The lawsuit is important to watch as cities like Denver and Baltimore move forward with body camera initiatives for police officers and deal with issues like officer
workload and redaction for captured video.