New Law Restricts Requests for WA Police Body Camera Footage

By a margin of 61-36, the Washington State House of Representatives has passed a new law that adds restrictions and requirements to requests to see footage from police body cameras.

The bill is designed to set rules on what can be requested as a matter of public record, requires police agencies who utilize such cameras to set up written policies, and will also set up a task force who will examine and advise on their best use.

The bill will require people requesting police body camera footage to provide their name, the name of the person involved, the date and time of the incident and what it concerns (the nature of the event) and will require the person or persons requesting the footage to pay for redacting the videos (to obscure or blur parts of the video for security purposes).

It will now move onto the Senate for further approval.