south dakota capitol

South Dakota Lawmakers Decline to Pass Legislation Regulating Police Body Cameras

The state is only one of a few not to have a statewide law regulating how police body camera footage is maintained and released to the public.

  • By Haley Samsel
  • Feb 10, 2020

Lawmakers in South Dakota defeated legislation last week that would have regulated the use of police body cameras and how footage is released to the public.

The original bill filed by state Sen. Reynold Nesiba, a Democrat, regulated when the cameras could be turned on or off, how footage should be maintained and if it should be considered a public record, according to The Argus Leader. The newspaper published an investigation last year into the 44 police shootings that have taken place in South Dakota since 2001 that prompted the drafting of the legislation.

When the legislation went through the committee process, legislators decided to replace the text of the bill with language that would have created a legislative committee to study police body camera usage before next year’s session, The Argus Leader reported.

But, on Wednesday, the Senate State Affairs Committee defeated the new bill because senators did not want the bill to prioritize the study of police body cameras over other topics, such as drug epidemics ravaging the state. Body cameras can still be considered as an “interim study topic” instead of being part of an established committee.

Law enforcement groups were against the bill, arguing that police departments were already using best practices for their cameras and that any broad policy could negatively affect smaller departments. The South Dakota Newspaper Association was the only organization supporting the bill, according to the Argus Leader.

As the Argus Leader points out, South Dakota is one of only a few states, including Colorado and New Mexico, without a state law regulating how footage is released and when cameras should be on and off. Each individual agency determines whether or not to release body cam footage in specific cases.

Karl Kegeris, the police chief in Rapid City, told the newspaper that the legislature should focus on other issues, noting that local oversight measures are in place for his department.

“We are not going to run rogue with our body camera program because if we do it once, the entire value of that program is diminished," Jegeris said. "We have a lot of problems without solutions. This appears to be a solution for something that is not a problem."

For more information on public disclosure policies for police departments across the U.S., the Reporters Committee For Freedom of the Press maintains a database on body camera footage policies for each state.

About the Author

Haley Samsel is an Associate Content Editor for the Infrastructure Solutions Group at 1105 Media.

Featured

  • Cost: Reactive vs. Proactive Security

    Security breaches often happen despite the availability of tools to prevent them. To combat this problem, the industry is shifting from reactive correction to proactive protection. This article will examine why so many security leaders have realized they must “lead before the breach” – not after. Read Now

  • Achieving Clear Audio

    In today’s ever-changing world of security and risk management, effective communication via an intercom and door entry communication system is a critical communication tool to keep a facility’s staff, visitors and vendors safe. Read Now

  • Beyond Apps: Access Control for Today’s Residents

    The modern resident lives in an app-saturated world. From banking to grocery delivery, fitness tracking to ridesharing, nearly every service demands another download. But when it comes to accessing the place you live, most people do not want to clutter their phone with yet another app, especially if its only purpose is to open a door. Read Now

  • Survey: 48 Percent of Worshippers Feel Less Safe Attending In-Person Services

    Almost half (48%) of those who attend religious services say they feel less safe attending in-person due to rising acts of violence at places of worship. In fact, 39% report these safety concerns have led them to change how often they attend in-person services, according to new research from Verkada conducted online by The Harris Poll among 1,123 U.S. adults who attend a religious service or event at least once a month. Read Now

  • AI Used as Part of Sophisticated Espionage Campaign

    A cybersecurity inflection point has been reached in which AI models has become genuinely useful in cybersecurity operation. But to no surprise, they can used for both good works and ill will. Systemic evaluations show cyber capabilities double in six months, and they have been tracking real-world cyberattacks showing how malicious actors were using AI capabilities. These capabilities were predicted and are expected to evolve, but what stood out for researchers was how quickly they have done so, at scale. Read Now

Most   Popular

New Products

  • Camden CV-7600 High Security Card Readers

    Camden CV-7600 High Security Card Readers

    Camden Door Controls has relaunched its CV-7600 card readers in response to growing market demand for a more secure alternative to standard proximity credentials that can be easily cloned. CV-7600 readers support MIFARE DESFire EV1 & EV2 encryption technology credentials, making them virtually clone-proof and highly secure.

  • QCS7230 System-on-Chip (SoC)

    QCS7230 System-on-Chip (SoC)

    The latest Qualcomm® Vision Intelligence Platform offers next-generation smart camera IoT solutions to improve safety and security across enterprises, cities and spaces. The Vision Intelligence Platform was expanded in March 2022 with the introduction of the QCS7230 System-on-Chip (SoC), which delivers superior artificial intelligence (AI) inferencing at the edge.

  • FEP GameChanger

    FEP GameChanger

    Paige Datacom Solutions Introduces Important and Innovative Cabling Products GameChanger Cable, a proven and patented solution that significantly exceeds the reach of traditional category cable will now have a FEP/FEP construction.