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WEBVTT HE JOINS US FROM APD'S NORTHWESTSUBSTATION.MATT?MATT: THAT RECORDS CUSTODIANSAYS OFFICERS DELETED OR ALTEREDBODY CAMERA FOOTAGE CONNECTED TOCRUCIAL CASES, SPECIFICALLYCASES WHERE OFFICERS FIRED THEIRWEAPONS.AND KILLED SUSPECTS.TODAY, AN OUTSIDE INVESTIGATIONINTO THOSE ALLEGATIONS, RAISESMORE QUESTIONS THAN ANSWERS.LAST YEAR, FORMER APD RECORDSCUSTODIAN REYNALDO CHAVEZDROPPED A BOMBSHELL.ALLEGING THAT APD WITHELD ANDALTERED BODY CAMERA FOOTAGE INPROMINENT CASES.THE CITY ORDERED AN OUTSIDEINVESTIGATION.AND TONIGHT, IT'S FINALLYFINISHED.>> THE ORIGINAL VIDEO FILES ARESTILL INTACT AND AVAILABLE.MATT: INVESTIGATORS FROM A FIRMIN CHICAGO LOOKED THROUGHEVIDENCE.COM, SOFTWARE OFFICERSUPLOAD THEIR BODY CAMERA FOOTAGEDAILY.THEY FOUND EVIDENCE.COM PREVENTSANYONE, EVEN TOP APD OFFICIALS,FROM TAMPERING WITH ANY UPLOADEDORIGINAL VIDEOS.BUT EVEN WITH ORIGINAL VIDEOSINTACT, CHAVEZ SAYS APD ALTEREDVIDEO COPIES FROM PROMINENTCASES GIVEN TO THE MEDIA, THEPUBLIC, AND ATTORNEYS.IN THEIR REPORT, INVESTIGATORSSUGGESTED THAT COULD HAPPEN.AND THE CITY?>> I DON'T HAVE ANY INFORMATIONTHAT WE HAVE EVER PRODUCED ANALTERED VERSION OF THISEVIDENCE.MATT: IT COULDN'T TELL US TODAYIF ANY VIDEO COPIES FROMPROMINENT CASES HANDED OUT WEREALTERED OR NOT.THE MOST NOTABLE?THE MARY HAWKES CASE.HAWKES, A SUSPECTED CARJACKER,WAS SHOT AND KILLED BY APD IN2014.IN COURT DOCUMENTS, CHAVEZ SAYSTHE FIRST 20 SECONDS OF KEYVIDEO IN THE CASE WERE DELETED.INVESTIGATORS FOUND THE ORIGINALVIDEO STILL EXISTS ONEVIDENCE.COM.THE CITY SAYS ANYONE WHO THINKSTHEY GOT AN ALTERED COPY OF ANYVIDEO FOOTAGE CAN CONTACT THEM.>> IF YOU FEEL THAT'S BEENDOCTORED, AND YOU WANT TOCOMPARE IT TO THE ORIGINAL?ABSOLUTELY.MATT: THE HAWKES FAMILY IS NOWSUING THE CITY.SHANNON KENNEDY, THE ATTORNEYFOR THE FAMILY, TOLD US THISEVENING THAT SHE DISPUTES THISOUTSIDE INVESTIGATION AND PLANSON FILING DESTRUCTION OFEVIDENCE MOTIONS AGAINST THE

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An outside investigation reviewing allegations that the Albuquerque Police Department withheld and altered evidence connected to prominent cases is complete. Last year, APD’s former records custodian Reynaldo Chavez filed a whistleblower lawsuit against the city. In court documents, Chavez alleged that he was ordered by city officials to, “deny, withhold, obstruct, conceal or even destroy records,” connected to prominent cases. Specifically, cases where officers fired their weapons. In the wake of the allegations, the city launched an outside investigation led by a Chicago firm called Elijah. Investigators reviewed “Evidence.com,” which is the location where officers upload their body camera footage to daily. In their report, Elijah found that original videos uploaded to Evidence.com cannot tampered with. Even elite officials within the department cannot alter original videos. However, Elijah found that the department could easily alter or edit copies of original footage uploaded to the site. In court documents, Chavez alleged that the department altered video copies from prominent cases given to the media and attorneys involved in those cases. In their report, investigators suggested that very well could have happened. City Attorney Jessica Hernandez says that the department alters copies of body camera footage all the time. “There’s proof of us blurring out victims and undercover officers in the past,” Hernandez said. Blurring out officers or victims is extremely obvious when reviewing lapel footage. However, it isn’t as obvious to know if the resolution of a video has been changed or if a video is missing any additional footage. That is an important key when it comes to the Mary Hawkes shooting. Hawkes, 19, was shot and killed by APD officer Jeremy Dear after a foot chase in 2014. Dear says Hawkes, a suspected car thief, had a gun and that he feared for his life during the shooting. However, all the body camera footage released doesn’t reveal a clear picture of Hawke’s death. That fact became more critical when Chavez revealed in court documents that he had, “reviewed the lapel camera video (which two officers) provided to APD Forensic after the shooting of Mary Hawkes.” “Based on my knowledge of Evidence.com, I can see that (one officer)'s lapel camera video has been altered by changing the gradient of the resolution on the video. I can see as much as the first twenty seconds of (the other officer’s) video has been deleted.” The report compiled by Elijah found that all original footage submitted for the Hawkes shooting was still intact on Evidence.com. The city said today that it knows of no issues when it comes to handing over original footage to the media or attorneys involved in certain cases. However, it said anyone is more than welcome to reach out to officials if they feel like footage they received from APD was doctored so they can compare it with the originals in Evidence.com. The Hawkes family has since filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the city. Their attorney, Shannon Kennedy, told KOAT that she disputes the report compiled by Elijah. “The report reads like another City of Albuquerque press release covering up a cover up. The upshot is that they did not produce to the Hawkes family the original lapel camera videos,” Kennedy said. She also added that her firm has discovered that cameras used that night of the shooting are missing also.