My Role: In this story I reached out to multiple sources regarding both bills that were very similar, but had their differences. My goal in this story was to flush out the differences for the reader. Additionally, went to the the Alabama Broadcaster Association and the Alabama Press Association to see what the press thinks of these bills.
MONTGOMERY, Ala. – Two separate bills in the Alabama House and Senate would expand public access to recordings of law enforcement’s body camera and dashboard camera videos.
Last year, the Legislature approved House Bill 289, sponsored by Rep. Juandalynn Givan, D-Birmingham. It grants people whose image or voice is on a law enforcement recording the right to request access to the footage. They could view it, but not have a copy of it. If the person in the video is deceased, a family member could request to see it. The bill says law enforcement does not have to distribute copies of the videos and media and the general public aren’t included in the list of those who might have viewing access. It also allows law enforcement to deny requests that interfere with an investigation or prosecution.
Advocates last year said the legislation was a step toward access.
In 2021, the Alabama Supreme Court ruled that a sheriff’s office did not have to turn over records about a fatal shooting by a deputy, a ruling that broadly interpreted an exemption for investigative records, the Associated Press reported at the time.
Now, Givan is sponsoring House Bill 41, which says an ongoing investigation can only delay the viewing of the footage for no more than six months.
“We are trying our best to, inch by inch, finally get to full disclosure,” Givan told Alabama Daily News.
In the Senate, Sen. Merika Coleman, D-Birmingham, is sponsoring Senate Bill 14 that would make footage public record similar to other government documentation, released within 30 days of the request.
“This bill is needed because the previous bill passed actually made it harder for families to gain access to body cam video,” Coleman said in an email to ADN.
Coleman and Givan, both of whom are running for Congress in Alabama’s Second District, have not collaborated on their respective bills.
“If (Givan’s) bill passes the House and makes it to the Senate, I will vote for her bill, however, I believe that six months is too long for families to wait which is why my bill is only a 30-day wait,” Coleman said.
The Alabama Broadcasters Association and the Alabama Press Association are aware and supportive of both bills.
“We are in favor of language in either bill that makes body cam video more accessible to the public,” ABA President Sharon Tinsley. “It would help the public understand what happened in an incident.”
“It’s absolutely helpful in an investigation, but I think it would also be helpful if members of the public were able to see it.”
Coleman’s proposal would be called the Jawan Dallas and Steve Perkins Act. Dallas died in July after being Tased twice by police in Mobile. Perkins, of Decatur, was shot and killed by local police in September.
Neither bill has yet received a committee vote.
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