054 of 2020 - Police Officer Body-worn Cameras1
SALT LAKE CITY ORDINANCE
No. 54 of 2020
(An Ordinance Enacting Chapter 2.10.200 Regulating the Police Department’s Use of Body-
Worn Cameras)
WHEREAS, Salt Lake City Corporation is prioritizing policy and ordinance reforms so
that the City will be as progressive and safe in its policing of all people within its jurisdiction as
possible.
WHEREAS, police body-worn camera recordings are important City records and it is in
the public interest to assure that they are managed transparently and consistently.
WHEREAS, body-worn cameras are fundamental, essential tools for the Salt Lake City
Police Department to do its job protecting and serving the community.
WHEREAS, body-worn camera recordings can be used to protect the rights of all parties
— community members who interact with police officers, the police officers themselves,
bystanders, and the City taxpayers.
WHEREAS, the City Council recognizes that police officers face unpredictable
circumstances and need to make immediate decisions. Body-worn camera recordings can establish
the sequence of events and enhance the level of accountability for all parties.
WHEREAS, Salt Lake City Corporation has made a significant investment in body-worn
camera technology, based upon the important role the recordings serve.
WHEREAS, the City Council has allocated the level of funding necessary for the police
department to furnish each officer with a body-worn camera and has funded the necessary
technology and electronic record storage capacity.
WHEREAS, the City Council seeks to emphasize the importance of the use of this tool and
considers it to be a mandatory component of policing. The Council seeks to avoid any
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circumstance where an officer’s interactions with the public are not recorded, and seeks to avoid
any circumstance wherein not all officers at an incident are recording video.
WHEREAS, under Utah law, a police officer must activate a body-worn camera prior to
any law enforcement encounter, or as soon as reasonably possible. The City Council desires to
emphasize this Utah law requirement and supplement it with policy direction.
WHEREAS, based on these policy objectives with respect to body-worn cameras, the
Council desires to enact the following regulations in order to create a safer city for all people in
Salt Lake City and to ensure that the Salt Lake City Police Department is a trusted partner to all
people.
NOW, THEREFORE, be it ordained by the City Council of Salt Lake City, Utah:
SECTION 1. Chapter 2.10.200 of the Salt Lake City Code shall be, and hereby is, enacted
to read as follows.
A. Definitions.
1. “Body-worn camera” means a video recording device that is carried by, or worn on the
body of, a law enforcement officer and that is capable of recording the operations of
the officer.
"Body-worn camera" does not include a dashboard mounted camera or a camera
intended to record clandestine investigation activities.
2. “Officer involved critical incident” means any of the items enumerated in Utah Code
76-2-408 and its successor provisions, and only for the purposes of this ordinance (and
not for any purposes related to activating an officer involved critical incident protocol
with outside agencies) will, at a minimum, include the following:
a. an officer's use of deadly force;
b. an officer's use of a dangerous weapon, which may include a police canine, against
a person that causes injury to any person;
c. death or serious bodily injury to any person, other than the officer, resulting from
an officer’s:
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(1) use of a motor vehicle while the officer is on duty; or
(2) use of a government vehicle while the officer is off duty;
d. the death of a person who is in custody, but excluding a death that is the result of
disease, natural causes, or conditions that have been medically diagnosed prior to
the person's death; or
e. the death of or serious bodily injury to a person not in custody, other than an officer,
resulting from an officer's attempt to prevent a person's escape from custody, to
make an arrest, or otherwise to gain physical control of a person.
B. Mandatory Use of Body-Worn Cameras.
1. With the exception of the members of the Salt Lake City Police Department who have
positions or job duties that do not warrant wearing a body-worn camera, all officers
shall wear a body-worn camera when on duty. Under Utah law an officer must activate
a body-worn camera prior to any law enforcement encounter or as soon as reasonably
possible. An officer shall not de-activate a body-worn camera or mute the sound
recording without first stating, on the camera recording, the reason for deactivating the
body-worn camera or muting the sound. An officer will not de-activate or mute a body-
worn camera until the end of the law enforcement encounter and upon returning to the
officer’s vehicle, unless the officer provides a reason on the camera recording for
earlier de-activation or muting of the body-worn camera.
2. The police department will keep a record of all instances in which a body-worn camera
is de-activated, the sound is muted, or when an officer fails to activate a body-worn
camera prior to a law enforcement encounter, including the name of the officer and the
reason for de-activation, muting, or failing to activate and such record will be provided
to the Mayor and City Council on a quarterly basis.
C. Internal City Review of Body-Worn Camera Protocol: Officer Involved Critical
Incident
1. Within 24 hours after the occurrence of any officer involved critical incident, the Chief
of Police shall notify the City Attorney, the Council Chair, the Mayor, and the Mayor’s
Chief of Staff, of the facts of the officer involved critical incident.
2. Not more than five days after the officer involved critical incident, the Mayor, City
Council Members and City Attorney will be provided links through secure file share to
all unedited body-worn camera footage from all officers at the incident and any 911
calls related to the incident.
3. The Council may, at its discretion call for a closed session to be briefed on the facts
and legal issues surrounding the officer involved critical incident.
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4. For four years after the officer involved critical incident, the Police Department and the
City Recorder will, within five business days of receipt of such a request, notify the
City Attorney and Mayor’s Office, and City Council of any GRAMA request pertaining
to body-worn camera footage of an officer involved critical incident
5. For four years after the officer involved critical incident, the City Attorney will, within
five business days of receipt, notify the City Council and Mayor’s Office of any notice
of claim received in connection with an officer involved critical incident.
D. Public Review of Body-Worn Camera Protocol: Officer Involved Critical Incident
1. The public is presumed to have a strong interest in accessing body-worn camera
recordings of officer involved critical incidents. For this reason, no later than ten
business days after the officer involved critical incident, subject to section 3(b) and (c)
herein, the unedited full-length body-worn camera recording will be classified as a
public record, barring any unusual or unforeseen circumstances, which may include an
inability to complete investigative interviews with key witnesses.
2. Once the record has been classified as public, the City will release any body-worn
camera recordings of officer involved critical incidents involving Salt Lake City Police
Department officers. The recordings may be subject to redaction or segregation of any
private, controlled or protected images or sounds contained on the recordings.
3. Some images from a body-worn camera might be offensive or violate an individual’s
privacy and should not be disclosed, unless requested by the family of the individual
involved with the encounter with law enforcement officers. These offensive/violative
images include, but are not limited to: images inside a private residence, medical and
mental health care treatment and facilities, intimate images, images of minors, images
showing the moment an individual deceases or the individual’s body the moment after
deceasing, domestic violence or sexual assault victims or witnesses, and domestic
violence or sexual assault facilities and shelters. Such images constitute an
unwarranted invasion on personal privacy. If a video containing those images is
requested, it will be disclosed only if the content is of legitimate interest to the public,
and content containing the specific images that are presumed highly offensive will be
redacted.
4. Before publicly releasing a body-worn camera recording of an officer-involved critical
incident that results in the death of an individual, the Police Department will:
a. Consult with an organization with expertise in trauma and grief on best practices
for creating an opportunity for the victim or the decedent’s next of kin to view the
body-worn camera recording in advance of its release;
b. Notify the victim or the decedent’s next of kin of its impending release, including
the date when it will be released; and
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c. Offer the victim or the decedent’s next of kin the opportunity to view the body-
worn camera recording in advance of its release, and if the next of kin wish to so
view the body-worn camera recording, facilitate its viewing.
5. Body-worn camera footage will not be released to the public for any purpose other than
to comply with this ordinance, unless pursuant to a valid GRAMA request, or for valid
law enforcement purposes which must be approved by the Chief of Police.
E. Audits. In order to ensure that members of the Salt Lake City Police Department are
complying with state law, City Code, and Police Department policy, a qualified
individual outside of the Salt Lake City Police Department designated by the Mayor
shall randomly review at least five body-worn camera recordings at least once a month.
Any findings of material non-compliance with state law, City Code and Police
Department policy will be referred to the Chief of Police, the City Attorney, the Council
Chair, the Mayor and the Mayor’s Chief of Staff.
F. Officer Use of Body-Worn Camera Recordings.
1. Officers may not use personal recording cameras at any time while on duty.
2. Officers may not use recordings from body-worn cameras for personal use, and may
not upload recordings from body-worn cameras onto public and social media websites.
3. Officers may not alter or edit any body-worn camera footage without express
permission from either the Chief of Police or the City Attorney.
SECTION 2. This ordinance shall become effective immediately upon publication.
Passed by the City Council of Salt Lake City, Utah this 1st day of December, 2020.
____________________________________
Chris Wharton, Council Chair
ATTEST:
_________________________
Cindy Lou Trishman
City Recorder
Transmitted to Mayor on ____________________________.
Mayor’s Action: _________ Approved. ____________ Vetoed.
Chris Wharton (Dec 4, 2020 10:59 MST)
Dec 7, 2020
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Cindy Trishman (Dec 7, 2020 12:02 MST)
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_______________________________________
Mayor Erin Mendenhall
_________________________
CITY RECORDER
(SEAL)
Bill No. 54 of 2020.
Published: __________________
APPROVED AS TO FORM
Salt Lake City Attorney’s Office
By: _________________________
Katherine Lewis, City Attorney
Katherine Lewis (Dec 3, 2020 21:54 MST)
Erin Mendenhall (Dec 7, 2020 09:38 MST)
Cindy Trishman (Dec 7, 2020 12:02 MST)
December 9, 2020
Ordinance 54 of 2020 - Approved 12/1/20
Final Audit Report 2020-12-07
Created:2020-12-03
By:DeeDee Robinson (deedee.robinson@slcgov.com)
Status:Signed
Transaction ID:CBJCHBCAABAAADjBkzNHv3XUkBASqka5v-KLSSnf1mZv
"Ordinance 54 of 2020 - Approved 12/1/20" History
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