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Subject to the availability of amounts appropriated for this specific purpose, law enforcement agencies participating in the pilot program created in section 4 of this act must deploy body worn cameras. An agency may deploy body worn and vehicle dashboard cameras in phases in order to develop procedures for storing, searching, and retrieving the body worn and vehicle dashboard camera recordings in its custody for the agency's operations, for pending judicial proceedings, or for public disclosure required by law.
Law enforcement agencies participating in the pilot grant program must maintain body worn and vehicle dashboard camera recordings for 10 years after the recorded incident occurs. The law enforcement agency may not destroy recordings until 10 years after the recorded incident occurs.
A law enforcement agency participating in the pilot grant program must retain access to and custody of its body worn and vehicle dashboard camera recordings as provided in section 4 of this act. The agency is responsible for use of the recordings for the law enforcement agency's operations and during the judicial process.
A law enforcement or corrections agency that deploys body worn or vehicle dashboard cameras must establish policies regarding the use of the cameras. The policies must, at a minimum, address:
When a body worn or vehicle dashboard camera must be activated and deactivated, and when a law enforcement or corrections officer has the discretion to activate and deactivate the body or vehicle dashboard worn camera;
How a law enforcement or corrections officer is to respond to circumstances when it would be reasonably anticipated that a person may be unwilling or less willing to communicate with an officer who is recording the communication with a body worn or vehicle dashboard camera;
How a law enforcement or corrections officer will document when and why a body worn or vehicle dashboard camera was deactivated prior to the conclusion of an interaction with a member of the public while conducting official law enforcement or corrections business;
How, and under what circumstances, a law enforcement or corrections officer is to inform a member of the public that he or she is being recorded, including in situations where the person is a non-English speaker or has limited English proficiency, or where the person is deaf or hard of hearing;
How officers are to be trained on body worn and vehicle dashboard camera usage and how frequently the training is to be reviewed or renewed; and
Security rules to protect data collected and stored from body worn or vehicle dashboard cameras.
A law enforcement or corrections agency that deploys body worn or vehicle dashboard cameras before June 9, 2016, must establish the policies within one hundred twenty days of June 9, 2016. A law enforcement or corrections agency that deploys body worn or vehicle dashboard cameras on or after June 9, 2016, must establish the policies before deploying body worn or vehicle dashboard cameras.
For a city or town that is not deploying body worn cameras on June 9, 2016, a legislative authority of a city or town is strongly encouraged to adopt an ordinance or resolution authorizing the use of body worn cameras prior to their use by law enforcement or a corrections agency. Any ordinance or resolution authorizing the use of body worn cameras should identify a community involvement process for providing input into the development of operational policies governing the use of body worn cameras.
[ 2016 c 163 § 6; ]
For state and local agencies, a body worn camera may only be used by officers employed by a general authority Washington law enforcement agency as defined in RCW 10.93.020, any officer employed by the department of corrections, and personnel for jails as defined in RCW 70.48.020 and detention facilities as defined in RCW 13.40.020.
[ 2018 c 285 § 3; 2016 c 163 § 8; ]