Officer Jeremy Dear may not have lapel camera video of the night he shot 19 year old Mary Hawkes.

Advertisement Lapel camera policy APD's most violated in 2013 Policy violated 60 times last year Share Shares Copy Link Copy

Albuquerque police Officer Jeremy Dear may not have lapel camera video of the night he shot and killed Mary Hawkes, 19.Action 7 News has learned this is not the first time Dear came back without lapel video.Several people have filed excessive force complaints against Dear. In at least two of those cases, there was no lapel video to back it up.Action 7 News learned Dear is far from the only officer who has come back from a call without video.When a citizen files a complaint against an Albuquerque police officer, it's up to the city's independent review officer to check it out. Robin Hammer looks to see what, if any, department policies were violated.In 2013, Hammer said the lapel video policy was violated 60 times, which is far more than any other policy. Officers are supposed to record every encounter with the public, but that doesn't always happen."Sometimes the officer admits their shortcomings," Hammer said.Other times, Hammer said officers have told her the camera malfunctioned or the battery died. That's what Dear said when Hammer asked him about a complaint from February 2013. An Albuquerque man claimed Dear punched him in the stomach and kicked him in the groin during a traffic stop."Whether it was a camera malfunction, or whether it was Officer Dear not turning on his camera, either intentionally or unintentionally, we do not know," Hammer said.Hammer said lapel video is often a crucial piece of her investigations, and sometimes the only way officers are held accountable for their actions.Without Dear's video, Hammer could not prove he used excessive force."The department cannot impose discipline for that complaint," Hammer said.It's the police chief's discretion to decide how to discipline an officer for not following the department's video policy.According to APD's guidelines, punishments can range from a written reprimand for the first offense to a 10-day suspension for the third offense.There is no evidence in Dear's personnel file that he has ever been disciplined for not having lapel camera video.Dear's lapel camera video has been sent to the manufacturer to see if any video of Hawkes' shooting can be recovered.