After Samuel DuBose shooting, push for police body cameras

Departments using police body cameras to some extent

Departments testing police body cameras

Departments researching, considering or planning to use police body cameras

One day after stunning footage from a University of Cincinnati’s own body camera showed him shooting and killing Samuel DuBose, local law enforcement experts say they’re making plans to outfit their police departments with the equipment.

But others also caution privacy and cost issues related to the devices still need to be worked out before officers donning them with their uniform.

Officers in some local departments are already wearing the cameras while other departments in Dayton, Hamilton and Middletown are working on equipping their officers with the gadgets.

Hamilton County Prosecutor Joseph Deters Wednesday released video of former UC police officer Ray Tensing’s deadly traffic stop of 43-year-old Samuel DuBose in Cincinnati.

The officer’s video showed a different scene unfold during the July 19 shooting incident then Tensing had claimed, Deters said Wednesday. He described it Wednesday as “invaluable” evidence to earning the murder indictment handed down this week. Tensing has pleaded not guilty to the crime.

Tensing said he was forced to shoot DuBose during a traffic stop after he was dragged by the victim’s car.

But Deters argued the video shows DuBose’s car only accelerated after Tensing shot him in the head.

“This is without question a murder,” Deters said during a press conference Wednesday of watching the video.

It was the first time Deters said he ever thought that after seeing evidence from an officer-involved shooting. And, if it hadn’t been for the officer’s own body camera video, that wouldn’t be his response.

The new DNA?

When — experts say it’s not a matter of ‘if’— more officers starting suiting up with body cameras, it will become groundbreaking evidence for prosecutors like Deters or Butler County Prosecutor Michael Gmoser.

“It’s almost like having DNA,” Gmoser said of body cameras. “It’s about as close to DNA as you can get.”

Prosecutors aren’t the only ones asking for the cameras.

"Our officers are even asking for them at this point," Butler County Sheriff Richard K. Jones, who months ago said he wasn't sold on the product, said Thursday.

Several law enforcement experts said body cameras will also hold the public accountable for complaints or allegations they make against officers who pulled them over during a traffic stop or arrested them.

Montgomery County Sheriff Phil Plummer said his office been testing body cameras and his officers aren’t opposed to wearing them.

“We’re experimenting with them; we’re looking at them,” he said. “There is still some concern on the quality of them right now.”

The Dayton Police Department is also exploring the use of body cameras and is currently surveying residents to get feedback on the possibility of body cameras.

Meanwhile officers working in police departments at the University of Dayton, Miami University, Central State University, Englewood, and Sugarcreek Twp. are wearing the body cameras while on duty.

Cincinnati Police Chief Jeffrey Blackwell said they are working to get body cameras for the force’s 600 uniformed officers. Last August, about eight officers wore body cameras as part of a 30-day pilot program. But the city’s mayor said the video shooting of DuBose will likely encourage departments across the country to suit up.

“I think it’s safe to say that this case is going to help the cause of body cameras across the country,” Cincinnati Mayor John Cranley said Wednesday.

Middletown Police Chief Rodney Muterspaw said they are examining their budget to determine if it can buy 67 body cameras for his officers. He said after seeing how Tensing’s body camera, the chief said he’ll work even harder to make it happen.

“It was shocking to watch…It stunned me what happened because it’s not what the officer said what happened,” Muterspaw said of the video. “I think it makes me want to push that a little more and try to do what we can quicker.”

The unknown

One state representative from Columbus is drafting legislation that would require all 34,000 officers in Ohio to wear body cameras while on duty.

Rep. Kevin Boyce, D-Columbus, hopes to introduce the legislation by early fall.

“What police officers realize is that more times than not, a body camera will serve as a resource for them, in terms of a deterrent for deviant actions from folks they interact with,” he said. “Or perhaps capturing a crime committed on them.”

A spokesman for Ohio Gov. John Kasich, also a presidential candidate, said the governor has not “weighed in publicly” on the issue of body cameras when asked by a reporter if he would support such legislation.

Still unknown for many departments is how they will pay for the cameras as well as the equipment to store the video.

Earlier this year, the federal Department of Justice announced a $20 million program to outfit police departments across the country with body cameras. But, only 50 law enforcement agencies are expected to receive money, a spokesman for the agency told this news organization Thursday.

That’s stopped Brookville Police Chief Douglas Jerome from purchasing the body cameras, which he describes as a “great tool.” He said his department is too small to qualify for the grant.

“The funding for these units and costs related to the storage of data collected are not available at this time,” Jerome said.

Muterspaw, the Middletown chief, said he will pursue grants for his officers. He is also concerned about storage of the video data, and added he hopes police departments find a way to partner up on purchasing storage for the videos.

Public records laws — which Hamilton prosecutor Deters said he would like the Ohio Supreme Court to weigh in on — for how long the videos should be kept and when they should be released are still unclear.

And, privacy for both police officers and the public remain a concern.

“I hate to have officers go into people’s houses and record everything in those houses,” Plummer, the Montgomery county sheriff said. “It’s public record. Record a bad scene with, maybe, grandma now deceased on the floor, it’s now a public record.”

Recording of victims are also a concern for the American Civil Liberties Union of Ohio which supports officers wearing body cameras, but thinks the state should propose guidelines for their use and the retention of video. He said officers, too, have also expressed concern about their privacy in bathrooms or locker rooms while wearing the cameras.

“We want to make sure there are protections when talking to victims and witnesses so they’re aware they’re being recorded,” said Mike Brickner, ACLU’s senior policy director.