With protections in place, body cameras have the potential to better document encounters between police officers and citizens while mitigating competing concerns about their potential for misuse or abuse.

Police body-worn camera footage can be inconclusive at best and misleading at worst, and thus it is imperative that the defense community understand the key technical features of body-worn camera systems. For example, police body-worn cameras automatically save the 30 seconds of footage prior to the officer activating the camera. Moreover, other available data kept by camera systems could reveal which officers reviewed the footage and when, and who marked the video for deletion.

Brief of Amici Curiae [New York County Lawyers’ Association, New York State Defenders Association, New York State Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, National Association for Public Defense, National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers] in Support of Plaintiffs’ Motion Seeking Enforcement of this Court’s Orders, Modified Injunctive Relief, and a Finding of Civil Contempt.

Brief of Amici Curiae New York State Defenders Association, New York State Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, National Association for Public Defense, National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, the Bronx Defenders, Brooklyn Defender Services, and New York Criminal Bar Association in Support of Plaintiffs-Appellants.