# Federal Police Camera and Accountability Act: What You Need to Know

This bill requires all federal law enforcement officers to wear body cameras and equip patrol vehicles with dashboard cameras. The cameras must be turned on whenever officers respond to calls for service, make traffic stops, or interact with the public. Officers have to keep the cameras rolling until they leave the scene, though they can turn them off in genuine emergencies if turning them on would put their lives in danger. The main goal is to create a record of police interactions with the public and make officers more accountable for their actions.

The bill includes some important privacy protections. Before entering someone's home without a warrant, officers must ask if the homeowner wants the camera turned off—and if they say yes, the officer has to comply. The same goes for crime victims and people trying to report crimes anonymously. However, officers must record the fact that they asked and what the person said before shutting down the camera. The bill also bans facial recognition technology on these cameras, preventing officers from using them to identify people through automated systems.

When it comes to keeping the footage, most recordings get deleted after six months. But videos showing use of force, officer-involved shootings, or incidents where someone files a complaint must be kept for at least three years. People who appear in the videos—suspects, victims, witnesses, or their lawyers—can request to see the footage during that retention period. The public can also request videos through standard freedom of information laws, though some sensitive footage (like recordings of crime victims who didn't consent) can be withheld unless the person in the video agrees to release it. If officers deliberately fail to record, tamper with cameras, or destroy footage, they face discipline, and courts can assume evidence was destroyed if it would have helped a defendant or someone suing the government.

Federal Police Camera and Accountability Act

Norton, Eleanor Holmes

Federal Police Camera and Accountability Act This bill establishes requirements for federal law enforcement officers to wear body cameras and for federal law enforcement agencies to install video cameras in patrol cars.