WDRB once again focuses on a critical issue for government transparency and accountability: The failure of the Kentucky State Police to equip troopers with body and dash cameras .
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"Kentucky has been proactive in scheduling retention for body cam video (factoring in the costs of storage) and is currently expanding these efforts to accommodate increased use by other public agencies (including EMS and fire fighters).
https://kdla.ky.gov/records/recretentionschedules/Documents/Local%20Rec… (Records Series L6707)
It has also been proactive in addressing access to body cam video, enacting laws that cross reference the open records law and recognize enhanced rights of access for particular individuals and groups.
https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/law/statutes/statute.aspx?id=47987
https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/law/statutes/statute.aspx?id=47988
It is therefore troubling, but not at all surprising, to learn that KSP is dragging its collective feet on purchasing, and training troopers in the use of, body cameras.
Coupled with KSP's inaction, we increasingly hear about officers' failure to activate and, alternatively, turning off their body cams, officers who are selectively not equipped with body cams, and excessive redaction of body cam video at, for example, Louisville Metro Police Department and the Lexington Police Department. For example, faces and badge numbers of responding officers are redacted/blurred. This practice is not consistent with the body cam statute or the cross-referenced open records law.
The ill-advised enactment of KRS 61.878(1)(q) in 2021, exempting "photographs or videos that depict the death, killing, rape, or sexual assault of a person" expressly excludes videos governed by the body worn camera statute. Body cam video remains accessible despite the new exception.
https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/law/statutes/statute.aspx?id=51393
Clearly, much has been done, but much more remains to be done.
Reporters Jason Riley, Marcus Green, and Travis Ragsdale report on cases that:
"highlight an ongoing gap in transparency at KSP, the state's second-largest law enforcement agency behind the Louisville Metro Police Department. Without widespread camera use, the accounts of citizens and their state police can vary widely.
"Large local police departments in Kentucky — such as Louisville and Lexington — added body cameras years ago. Louisville police, which has about 1,100 officers, has used them since 2015.
"Most neighboring state police agencies now have and are adding more body cameras, but KSP has none. And only a fraction of cruisers have in-car cameras.
"The state police declined an interview request for this story.
"It also initially declined to say how many cruisers are outfitted with cameras. But a database obtained by WDRB News through a public records request shows 114 such cameras have been assigned across the state after they were purchased in June 2019.
"Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear said last week that state police are working with his budget director 'to outline their budgetary requests for both necessary pay increases and body camera options (for) the upcoming fiscal year.'
'I believe that body cameras can provide protection to law enforcement officers by documenting exactly what happened during a situation,' Beshear said in a statement. 'The footage can also be a valuable resource to help improve the agency and identify areas where training can be expanded upon.'
"KSP has long been criticized for a lack of transparency, even taking some citizens and media outlets to court in an effort to withhold public records.
"A 2018 WDRB investigation found state police had violated Kentucky's open records law more than any other government agency over the previous five years, based on rulings by the state attorney general's office.
"More recently, the Kentucky Center for Investigative Reporting and the Marshall Project revealed that between 2015 and 2020, state police officers shot and killed at least 41 people, more fatal shootings than any other law enforcement agency in Kentucky. The news organizations also found that state troopers killed more people in rural areas than any police department in the U.S.
"Several attorneys from around the state, some of whom refer to KSP as "The Grey Gods," say not having body cameras is exactly how the agency wants it.
"'You can't cross-examine a body camera video,' said Louisville attorney Thomas Clay, who has represented police officers in addition to those accused of crimes by police. 'So, (troopers) can say whatever they want.'
Attorney Greg Belzley, who has represented several people around the state in cases against the state police, said that within the agency, 'they know they have a problem. They don't want transparency. They don't want oversight.'
"Prosecutors say body and dash cams are beneficial to court cases, providing more indisputable evidence that can lead to quicker plea agreements or give jurors a more clear picture of what happened.
"'It's better than a recorded statement two hours later at the police department, better than an officer writing up a written report,' said Brian Wright, president of the Kentucky Commonwealth's Attorney's Association and the top prosecutor in Adair and Casey counties. "'It conveys to you exactly what's going on from the perspective of the camera.'
But Wright also pointed out that the funding for the cameras and, more specifically, the storage of the footage and how long it should be preserved, complicates the issue.
"'It's not as easy a solution as a lot of people think it is,' he said. 'There are some complicating factors.'
"Hardin County Commonwealth's Attorney Shane Young said storage issues are an issue with the Elizabethtown Police Department's body camera footage, which his office is responsible for keeping.
"Someone has to come up with an answer on how long you have to keep this stuff, and the state is going to have to have the ability to get enough space to store all this, which they are not willing to do right now,' he said."
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