Barbara Rodriguez

Associated Press

DES MOINES, Ia. — Measures that would address the growing use of body cameras in Iowa are not expected to impact law enforcement agencies this year, but their introduction to the Legislature this session showcases looming challenges for state officials.

Several lawmakers agree legislative action is needed soon as more Iowa authorities use body cameras to counter allegations of excessive force. In Iowa and around the country, legislators are scrutinizing their existing laws and using task forces to figure out the storage, public inspection and confidentiality of body camera footage.

"This is definitely a hot topic for state legislatures and for good reason," said Nancy La Vigne, director of the Washington-based Justice Policy Center at the Urban Institute. "Police agencies are deploying this technology very rapidly and it's being deployed well ahead of policy development and clarification around how the cameras can be used."

Supporters say body-worn cameras — often the size of a cigarette pack and clipped to an officer's uniform — restore transparency and trust in law enforcement. They also create questions about how to maintain the data while balancing the public's right to recorded footage and the privacy of people on the other end of the lens. An individual's age, mental health and other private details may be superseded if a state's public records law doesn't clearly address the emerging technology.

"There's agreement about the need to wear them and the need to retain footage," said Jeremy Rosen, executive director for the American Civil Liberties Union of Iowa. "We're down to the question of how long can it be retained for and in which cases is it a public record and which cases would it not be."

How D.M. police will use body cameras

A handful of states had legislation before 2015 that addressed body cameras, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. More than 30 states considered legislation last year. In Iowa, bills last session that proposed requiring authorities to use body cameras did not advance far.

The Urban Institute will release a report soon that describes how state legislatures are tackling the issue. Their snapshot shows cases where some states may update public records laws. La Vigne noted Iowa's law gives authorities jurisdiction to withhold material that's part of an ongoing investigation. But the language also specifies that immediate facts and circumstances surrounding a crime or incident shall not be kept confidential, except in "unusual circumstances" where disclosure would plainly and seriously jeopardize an investigation or pose a clear and present danger to the safety of an individual.

That wording is at the heart of cases in Iowa where law enforcement officials have challenged requests for recorded video. The family of a Burlington woman who was shot and killed last year by a police officer has taken legal action to try to access body camera footage and dash camera video, and other materials regarding her death.

La Vigne said Iowa's law "creates a big gray area, and a lot of states are experiencing this gray area." At least eight legislatures passed laws recently to create commissions or study groups to explore the issue.

In Iowa, a bill this session that would have required authorities to maintain body camera footage for up to two years in cases involving any use of force did not move past a procedural deadline. Sen. Steven Sodders, D-State Center, said he deferred the bill to a separate measure that would create interim legislative committees to examine the confidentiality of law enforcement records and investigate body cameras similar to other states.

Sodders said the body cameras committee should involve interested parties who can "sit down and say, 'What is best for Iowa? What should the perimeters be that all the departments can live with and can do?'"

It's unclear how many law enforcement agencies in Iowa deploy body cameras. Several of the largest agencies — including in Des Moines, Cedar Rapids and Iowa City — have either started using cameras or intend to do so soon.

For now, local authorities have developed their own polices on body cameras. Rosen, with the ACLU, said he commends their efforts, but he would like to see a uniform system across Iowa in case there's an incident involving a police chase or an officer-involved shooting.

"It's not ideal if there's one rule that allows you to get it if it happened in Des Moines then if the same thing happened in Iowa City," he said.