North Carolina Restricts Access to Police Body and Dash Cam Footage

Governor Pat McCory proudly claims the law is “Protecting those who protects us…”

By Darrell England

“Black Lives Matter” protests are being held all over the country as controversies continue to rise surrounding law enforcement and abuses of authority. While the country seems to be very interested in police transparency, the governor of North Carolina has signed the House Bill 972, which hides police body camera and dashboard footage from the public.

ABC News quotes McCory’s position that an individual’s trust is lost if footage is held too long and that it could be a misrepresentation of law enforcement if footage is immediately released. Attorney General of North Carolina Roy Cooper’s opposing position is that police body and dashboard cameras “should instead be treated as public record, with some exemptions for crime victims or investigations,” as reported in a separate ABC News article.

Protecting those who protect us while promoting uniformity, clarity & transparency. Read abt legislation signed 2day https://t.co/ZnwUwJcVaF

— Pat McCrory (@PatMcCroryNC) July 11, 2016

Will this law help protect the privacy of victims and suspects or help fuel suspicion that law enforcement is offered more protection than the people? This law goes into effect in October.

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