7-416 Use of Body-Worn Cameras – Revised November 22, 2016; March 13,

November 6, 2019
Purpose
The primary purpose of using body-worn-cameras (BWCs) is to capture evidence arising
from interactions with the public in an investigatory and/or enforcement capacity.
Recordings once captured are protected through multiple layers of encryption. Although a
recording may be copied, edited, and/or redacted, the original recording will continue to
exist in its original form.

This policy sets forth guidelines governing the use of BWCs and administering the data
that results. Compliance with these guidelines is mandatory, but it is recognized that
officers must also attend to other primary duties and the safety of all concerned,
sometimes in circumstances that are tense, uncertain, and rapidly evolving.

Policy
It is the policy of this department to authorize and require the use of department-issued
BWCs as set forth below, and to administer BWC data as provided by law.

Scope
This policy governs the use of BWCs in the course of official duties. It does not apply to
the use of squad-based (dash-cam) recording systems. The chief or chief’s designee may
supersede this policy by providing specific instructions for BWC use to individual officers,
or providing specific instructions pertaining to particular events or classes of events,
including but not limited to political rallies and demonstrations. The chief or designee may
also provide specific instructions or standard operating procedures for BWC use to officers
assigned to specialized details, such as carrying out duties in courts or guarding prisoners
or patients in hospitals and mental health facilities.

The Tennessen warning does not apply to the collection of BWC data.

Definitions
The following phrases have special meanings as used in this policy:

A. MGDPA or Data Practices Act refers to the Minnesota Government Data

Practices Act, Minn. Stat. § 13.01, et seq.

B. Records Retention Schedule refers to the General Records Retention Schedule

for Minnesota Cities.
 C. Law enforcement-related information means information captured or available
for capture by use of a BWC that has evidentiary value because it documents
events with respect to a stop, incident, arrest, search, citation, or charging decision.

D. Evidentiary value means that the information may be useful as proof in a criminal
prosecution, related civil or administrative proceeding, further investigation of an
actual or suspected criminal act, or in considering an allegation against a law
enforcement agency or officer.

E. General citizen contact means an informal encounter with a citizen that is not and
does not become law enforcement-related or adversarial, and a recording of the
event would not yield information relevant to an ongoing investigation. Examples
include, but are not limited to, assisting a motorist with directions, summoning a
wrecker, or receiving generalized concerns from a citizen about crime trends in his
or her neighborhood.

F. Adversarial means a law enforcement encounter with a person that becomes

confrontational, during which at least one person expresses anger, resentment, or
hostility toward the other, or at least one person directs toward the other verbal
conduct consisting of arguing, threatening, challenging, swearing, yelling, or
shouting. Encounters in which a citizen demands to be recorded or initiates
recording on his or her own are deemed adversarial.

G. Unintentionally recorded footage is a video recording that results from an

officer’s inadvertence or neglect in operating the officer’s BWC, provided that no
portion of the resulting recording has evidentiary value. Examples of unintentionally
recorded footage include but are not limited to recordings made in station house
locker rooms, restrooms, and recordings made while officers were engaged in
conversations of a non-business, personal nature with the expectation that the
conversation was not being recorded.

H. Official duties, for purposes of this policy, means that the officer is on duty and
performing authorized law enforcement services on behalf of this agency.

Use and Documentation

A. Officers may use only department-issued BWCs in the performance of official

duties for this agency or when otherwise performing authorized law enforcement
 services as an employee of this department. Law enforcement employees shall
receive BWC training prior to utilizing the BWC system.

B. Officers who have been issued BWCs shall operate and use them consistent with
this policy. Prior to beginning each shift, officers shall conduct a function test of their
issued BWCs to make sure the devices are operating properly. Testing shall be
performed in accordance with training and manufacturer’s guidelines. Officers
noting a malfunction during testing or at any other time shall promptly report the
malfunction to the officer’s supervisor and shall document the report in writing.
Supervisors shall take prompt action to address malfunctions and document the
steps taken in writing. If malfunctions are encountered with any component of the
system, the BWC will not be used.

C. Malfunctions, damage, loss, or theft of BWC equipment shall be reported to the

officer’s immediate supervisor as soon as reasonably possible. An officer should
obtain a functioning BWC as soon as reasonably possible. In no case shall the
report be made later than the end of that employee’s shift. An event report shall be
filed in the case of damaged or stolen property. The Services Division shall be
notified in writing of the suspected cause of equipment malfunction, damage, or
loss of BWC property.

D. Officers should wear their issued BWCs at the location on their body and in the
manner specified in training.

E. Officers must document BWC use and non-use as follows:

1. Whenever an officer makes a recording, the existence of the recording

shall be documented in an incident report or record/other documentation
of the incident.

2. Whenever an officer fails to record an activity that is required to be

recorded under this policy or captures only a part of the activity, the
officer must document the circumstances and reasons for not recording
in an incident report or record/other documentation of the incident.
Supervisors shall review these reports and initiate any corrective action
deemed necessary.

F. The department will maintain the following records and documents relating to BWC
use, which are classified as public data:
 1. The total number of BWCs owned or maintained by the department.

2. A daily record of the total number of BWCs actually deployed and used by
officers and, if applicable, the precincts in which they were used.

3. The total amount of recorded BWC data collected and maintained.

4. This policy, together with the Records Retention Schedule.

General Guidelines for Recording

A. Officers shall activate their BWCs when anticipating that they will be involved in,
become involved in, or witness other officers of this agency involved in a pursuit,
Terry stop of a motorist or pedestrian, search, seizure, arrest, use of force,
adversarial contact, and during other activities likely to yield information having
evidentiary value. However, officers need not activate their cameras when it would
be unsafe, impossible, or impractical to do so, but such instances of not recording
when otherwise required must be documented as specified in the Use and
Documentation guidelines, part (E) (2) above.

B. Plainclothes/undercover officers are not required to utilize the BWC system if doing
so would compromise their safety and/or the effectiveness of their assignment. In
the event that undercover officers are recorded incidentally by other employees, it
is not permissible to make the data of the undercover officer public.

C. Officers have discretion to record or not record general citizen contacts.

D. Officers have no affirmative duty to inform people that a BWC is being operated or
that the individuals are being recorded.

E. Once activated, the BWC should continue recording until the conclusion of the
incident or encounter, or until it becomes apparent that additional recording is
unlikely to capture information having evidentiary value. If the recording is
discontinued while an investigation, response, or incident is ongoing, officers shall
document the reasons for the interruption in recording. If circumstances change,
officers shall reactivate their cameras as required by this policy to capture
information having evidentiary value.
 F. Law Enforcement operators may mute or deactivate the MVR while deliberating
with other law enforcement staff and not otherwise interacting with members of
the public.

G. Officers shall not intentionally block the BWC’s audio or visual recording
functionality to defeat the purposes of this policy.

H. Notwithstanding any other provision in this policy, officers shall not use their BWCs
to record other agency personnel during non-enforcement related activities, such as
during pre- and post-shift time in locker rooms, during meal breaks, or during other
private conversations, unless recording is authorized as part of an administrative or
criminal investigation.

Special Guidelines for Recording

Officers may, in the exercise of sound discretion, determine:

A. To use their BWCs to record any police-citizen encounter if there is reason to believe
the recording would potentially yield information having evidentiary value, unless such
recording is otherwise expressly prohibited.

B. To use their BWCs to take recorded statements from persons believed to be victims of
and witnesses to crimes, and persons suspected of committing crimes, considering
the needs of the investigation and the circumstances pertaining to the victim, witness,
or suspect.

In addition,

C. Officers need not record persons being provided medical care unless there is reason
to believe the recording would document information having evidentiary value. When
responding to an apparent mental health crisis or event, BWCs shall be activated as
necessary to document any use of force and the basis for it, and any other information
having evidentiary value, but need not be activated when doing so would serve only to
record symptoms or behaviors believed to be attributable to the mental health issue.

D. Officers shall use their BWCs and squad-based audio/video systems to record their
transportation and the physical transfer of persons in their custody to hospitals, detox
and mental health care facilities, juvenile detention centers, and jails, but otherwise
should not record in these facilities unless the officer anticipates witnessing a criminal
 event or being involved in or witnessing an adversarial encounter or use-of-force
incident.

Downloading and Labeling Data

A. Each officer using a BWC is responsible for transferring or assuring the proper
transfer of the data from his or her camera to the Evidence Transfer Manager
(docking station). This will allow the data to be transferred from the BWC device
through the docking station to Evidence.com. This transfer shall be done by the
end of that officer’s shift. However, if the officer is involved in a shooting, in-custody
death, or other law enforcement activity resulting in death or great bodily harm, a
supervisor or investigator shall take custody of the officer’s BWC and assume
responsibility for transferring the data from it.

B. Normally BWC data files will be automatically categorized based on the disposition
of the Incident. However in certain cases Officers or the Officers Supervisor will
have to manually categorize videos and should assign as many of the following
labels as are applicable to each file:

1) Training – retention 90 days.

2) Non-Evidence/General Recording – retention 90 days
3) Protected – retention period 7 years
4) Citizen Complaint / Litigation– retention period –permanent
5) Arrest/Citation/Report – retention period – 7 years
6) Use of Force – retention period – 7 years
7) Use of Force – Death – retention period – permanent
8) Police Discharge of a Firearm – retention period 7 years if non
death; retention period permanent if death
9) Permanent File / Significant Event – Until manually deleted

Category Guidelines:
 Non-Evidence/ General Recording: Recordings not associated with an arrest or
citation.
This includes general citizen contacts that would not be considered evidence.

Protected: Recordings requiring a special level of review such as recordings

capturing
Individuals with confidential identities or security sensitive tactics.

Citizen Complaint / Litigation: All recordings associated with a complaint of misconduct by

a Member of the public or Litigation has been initiated or probable.

Arrest/Citation/Report: All recordings associated with any Misdemeanor or higher offense.

This includes any arrest, and all related recordings such as witness statements or other
Evidence.

Use of Force: All recordings in which use of force was captured, where the force does not
result in death.

Use of Force – Death: All recordings in which use of force was captured where force
resulted in death.

Police Discharge of Firearm – recordings in which a firearm discharge by an employee

was captured, where a notice is required under MN Statute Section 626.553 subd. 2.

Permanent File / Significant Event: recordings related to critical incident, homicide, death,
arson, pursuit injuries or significant property damage, squad accidents involving injuries or
significant property damage, man-made or natural disaster or terrorism, any event an
Officer believes should be brought to the immediate attention of command staff.

Administering Access to BWC Data:

A. Data subjects. Under Minnesota law, the following are considered data subjects
for purposes of administering access to BWC data:
 1. Any person or entity whose image or voice is documented in the data.

2. The officer who collected the data.

3. Any other officer whose voice or image is documented in the data, regardless of
whether that officer is or can be identified by the recording.

B. BWC data is presumptively private. BWC recordings are classified as private

data about the data subjects unless there is a specific law that provides differently.
As a result:

1. BWC data pertaining to people is presumed private, as is BWC data pertaining

to businesses or other entities.

2. Some BWC data is classified as confidential (see C. below).

3. Some BWC data is classified as public (see D. below).

C. Confidential data. BWC data that is collected or created as part of an active

criminal investigation is confidential. This classification takes precedence over the
“private” classification listed above and the “public” classifications listed below.

D. Public data. The following BWC data is public:

1. Data documenting the discharge of a firearm by a peace officer in the course of

duty, other than for training or the killing of an animal that is sick, injured, or
dangerous.

2. Data that documents the use of force by a peace officer that results in
substantial bodily harm.

3. Data that a data subject requests to be made accessible to the public, subject to
redaction. Data on any data subject (other than a peace officer) who has not
consented to the public release must be redacted [if practicable]. In addition,
any data on undercover officers must be redacted.
 4. Data that documents the final disposition of a disciplinary action against a public
employee. BWC data that accompanies the final disposition of disciplinary
action and data documenting the basis for the action (excluding data that would
identify confidential sources), is generally public data. These requests shall be
forwarded to the Chief of Police.

However, if another provision of the Data Practices Act classifies data as private or
otherwise not public, the data retains that other classification. For instance, data that
reveals protected identities under Minn. Stat. § 13.82, subd. 17 (e.g., certain victims,
witnesses, and others) should not be released even if it would otherwise fit into one of the
public categories listed above.

5. The identity and activities of an on-duty peace officer engaged in an

investigation or response to an emergency, incident, or request for service may
not be redacted unless they are undercover.

6. Data may become public once an investigation is inactive depending on the

contents of the investigation. Records should be consulted as to the status of
the investigation and the data classification of the contents of the record.

E. Data that contains material clearly offensive to common sensibilities – BWC

data that contains material clearly offensive to common sensibilities may be
redacted or withheld from being public. The determination of material that is clearly
offensive to common sensibilities should be made by the records supervisor in
coordination with police administration.

F. Court order – Any person may bring an action in district court located in the county
where BWC's are maintained to authorize disclosure of data that is private or
nonpublic or to challenge a determination made to not allow content to be public
that was deemed clearly offensive to common sensibilities. This does not affect the
right of a defendant in a criminal proceeding to obtain access to BWC data under
the rules of Criminal Procedure. In the event an action is brought, the Records
Division must give notice to other subjects of the BWC data, if known, of a person
bringing the action to challenge a determination made to not make content public
that was deemed clearly offensive to common sensibilities. Once notified that an
action has been filed in court, the Records Supervisor will prepare and send a letter
notifying all subjects in the BWC data of the challenge being made the classification
of the data. Copies of the letter(s), will be maintained in Evidence.com under
Cases.
G. Access to BWC data by non-employees. Officers shall refer members of the
media or public seeking access to BWC data to the Records Division, who shall
process the request in accordance with the MGDPA and other governing laws. In
particular:

1. An individual shall be allowed to review recorded BWC data about him or

herself and other data subjects in the recording, but access shall not be granted:

a. If the data was collected or created as part of an active investigation.

b. To portions of the data that the agency would otherwise be prohibited by

law from disclosing to the person seeking access, such as portions that
would reveal identities protected by Minn. Stat. § 13.82, subd. 17.

2. Unless the data is part of an active investigation, an individual data subject shall
be provided with a copy of the recording upon request, but subject to the
following guidelines on redaction:

a. Data on other individuals in the recording who do not consent to the release
must be redacted.

b. Data that would identify undercover officers must be redacted.

c. Data on other officers who are not undercover, and who are on duty and
engaged in the performance of official duties, may not be redacted.

H. Access by peace officers and law enforcement employees. No employee may

have access to the department’s BWC data except for legitimate law enforcement
or data administration purposes:

1. In order to ensure reports and testimony are accurate and complete, access to
BWC recordings will be provided to law enforcement operators when required for
legitimate law enforcement purposes. An exception will be made in cases that
result in the use or attempted use of deadly force by an officer or that result in
substantial or great bodily harm to a member of the public. In those cases, all
BWC’s will be preserved as evidence for investigation by another agency per RPD
policy 2-107 and/or 5-313. Rochester Police Department staff shall not access
recordings preserved as evidence under these circumstances without authorization
from the agency responsible for the investigation. An exception will be made if a
 recording is reasonably believed to contain information relevant to an immediate
threat to public safety and a delay in accessing that information would compromise
the safety of officers or the public.

2. An officer’s supervisor is responsible for ensuring that a BWC recordings that may
reasonably contain evidence of the use or attempted use of deadly force by an
officer or force that resulted in substantial or great bodily harm to a member of the
public is immediately secured.

3. Aside from these evidentiary recordings, a supervisor or administrative staff

member may review BWC recordings for the purpose of training, critique, early
intervention inquiries, civil claims, administrative inquiry, use of force review,
incident review, crash review, or other articulable reason.

4. Agency personnel are prohibited from accessing BWC data for non-business
reasons and from sharing the data for non-law enforcement related purposes,
including but not limited to uploading BWC data recorded or maintained by this
agency to public and social media websites.

5. Employees seeking access to BWC data for non-business reasons may make a
request for it in the same manner as any member of the public.

6. Not Public BWC data may be accessed by police department staff members if
authorized in writing by the Chief of Police or the Chief’s designee. Access may
only be granted for legitimate, specified law enforcement purposes. The Records
Supervisor will maintain a written list of employees that have been authorized
access.

I. Other authorized disclosures of data. Officers may display portions of BWC

footage to witnesses as necessary for purposes of investigation as allowed by
Minn. Stat. § 13.82, subd. 15, as may be amended from time to time. Officers
should generally limit these displays in order to protect against the incidental
disclosure of individuals whose identities are not public. Protecting against
incidental disclosure could involve, for instance, showing only a portion of the video,
showing only screen shots, muting the audio, or playing the audio but not displaying
video. In addition,

1. BWC data may be shared with other law enforcement agencies only for
legitimate law enforcement purposes that are documented in writing at the time
of the disclosure and upon meeting the requirements of Minnesota Statute
 13.825. All requestors of BWC data are required to complete a BWC Data
Request form that will be maintained for a minimum of 180 days. This includes
information for the requestor as well as data being released. All requests shall
be forwarded to the Records Supervisor for response. Responses to requests
will be documented in writing by the Records Supervisor or that person’s
designee.

2. BWC data shall be made available to prosecutors, courts, and other criminal
justice entities as provided by law.

J. BWC data may not be shared with, disseminated to, sold to, or traded with any
other individual or entity unless explicitly authorized by Minnesota Statute 13.825
subd 8.

Data Security Safeguards

A. Access to BWC recordings shall be granted only to authorized users pursuant to

this policy. It is the responsibility of authorized users to keep their user name and
password confidential. Accessing, copying, or releasing any recordings for other
than legitimate law enforcement purposes is strictly prohibited, except as required
by law.

B. BWC recordings will be accessed and copied from Evidence.com using

department-approved equipment only for legitimate law enforcement purposes.

C. BWC recordings can only be erased by the Records Division or System

Administrator with authorization from the Records Supervisor, Chief of Police or a
Division Commander. Any time a video is redacted for any purpose, the original of
the un-redacted video shall also be kept.

D. Supervisors will monitor the BWC recorder system for compliance with this policy.
Unauthorized access or disclosure of BWC video data may constitute misconduct
and result in discipline and/or criminal penalties pursuant to Minnesota Statute
13.09. E.

E. Officers shall not intentionally edit, alter, or erase any BWC recording unless
otherwise expressly authorized by the chief or the chief’s designee.
 F. As required by Minn. Stat. § 13.825, subd. 9, as may be amended from time to
time, this agency shall obtain an independent biennial audit of its BWC program.
The audit shall determine whether the data is being effectively managed according
to Minnesota Statute 13.825 subd 9.

G. The department must maintain records showing the date and time BWC system
data were collected and the applicable classification of the data.

Agency Use of Data

A. At least once a month, supervisors will randomly review BWC usage by each officer to
ensure compliance with this policy.

B. In addition, supervisors and other assigned personnel may access BWC data for the
purposes of reviewing or investigating a specific incident that has given rise to a
complaint or concern about officer misconduct or performance. Supervisors and
administrative personnel may review BWC data to review Use of Force incidents,
Crash review, and other administrative responsibilities.

C. Nothing in this policy limits or prohibits the use of BWC data as evidence of misconduct
or as a basis for discipline.

D. Officers should contact their supervisors to discuss retaining and using BWC footage
for training purposes. Officer objections to preserving or using certain footage for
training will be considered on a case-by-case basis. Field training officers may utilize
BWC data with trainees for the purpose of providing coaching and feedback on the
trainees’ performance.

Data Retention

All BWC data shall be retained for a minimum period of 90 days and in accordance with
the Records Retention Schedule and applicable laws.

When a particular recording is subject to multiple retention periods, it shall be maintained

for the longest applicable period.

All BWC footage that is classified as non-evidentiary and is not maintained for another
authorized purpose shall be destroyed after 90 days.
Upon written request by a BWC data subject, the agency shall retain a recording
pertaining to that subject for an additional time period requested by the subject of up to
180 days. The agency will notify the requestor at the time of the request that the data will
then be destroyed unless a new written request is received. These requests will be
forwarded immediately to the Records Division for prompt attention. Once notified that a
subject has requested a recording be maintained for an additional time period, the
Records Supervisor will log the request on a spreadsheet and send a letter notifying the
subject of retention date of the recording and that the data will be destroyed unless a new
request is subsequently received. The BWC video and letter will be maintained in
Evidence.com under Cases.

The department shall maintain an inventory of BWC recordings having evidentiary value.

The department will post this policy, together with a link to its Records Retention Schedule,
on its website.

Recorded media that is relevant to a criminal proceeding shall be retained until its proper
disposition in accordance with 13.825, the Records Retention Schedule, and criminal
procedure and court order. The Records Unit is responsible for clearing of evidence times.

The department may retain a recording for as long as reasonably necessary for possible
evidentiary or exculpatory use related to the incident with respect to which the data were
collected.

BWC data collected from other agencies must comply with the law and this policy
regarding data classification, access, destruction, use, retention, and security
requirements.

Compliance
Supervisors shall monitor for compliance with this policy. The unauthorized access to or
disclosure of BWC data may constitute misconduct and subject individuals to disciplinary
action and criminal penalties pursuant to Minn. Stat. § 13.09.

Security Assessment
The Services Division shall conduct an annual security assessment of personal
information maintained in the BWC system. The Services Division shall also review the
user access list to the BWC system annually to ensure the access is appropriate.
Breach of Security
A breach of security must be disclosed and notifications made pursuant to Minnesota
Statute 13.055. A breach of security shall be reported immediately to the employee’s
immediate supervisor, the Chief of Police, Professional Standards Manager, and
Administrative Services Manager. The Administrative Services Manager will cause to be
made written notification to any individual who is the subject of the data breach and whose
private or confidential data was, or is reasonably believed to have been, acquired by an
unauthorized person. The Administrative Services Manager must also inform the individual
that a report will be prepared by the Professional Standards Manager in consult with the
Chief of Police and command staff. This report must include:

A. A description of the type of data that were accessed or acquired.

B. The number of individuals whose data was improperly accessed or acquired.

C. The name of each employee determined to be responsible for the unauthorized

access, if there has been final disposition of disciplinary action for purposes of
section 13.43.

D. The final disposition of any disciplinary action taken against each employee in
response to the data breach.