State lawmakers propose bill to allow police to deny requests for bodycam footage being monetized
Supporters told News 12 the measure is designed to stop individuals and companies from profiting off of people featured in police encounters, most commonly young women, being arrested on suspicion of driving while intoxicated.
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A proposed bill in the New Jersey Legislature would allow law enforcement agencies to deny requests for police body camera footage if the recordings are sought for commercial purposes, including videos that generate revenue on social media platforms.
Supporters told News 12 the measure is designed to stop individuals and companies from profiting off of people featured in police encounters, most commonly young women, being arrested on suspicion of driving while intoxicated.
The videos are typically obtained through New Jersey's Open Public Records Act (OPRA), which allows members of the public to request government records, including police body-worn camera footage.
"We've had to hire additional staff to handle the number of OPRA requests and redacting and dealing with all this body-worn camera footage," said Montville Police Chief Andrew Caggiano.
Caggiano said some requests appear to target specific demographics for online content.
"They'll start with, 'We want all the DWI arrests for a specific month,' and then we'll get a second request saying, 'We just want the female,' and they'll request the body-worn camera footage from those," said Caggiano. "Depending on the number of clicks they get, ads, these people make money off this."
Under current law, requests for police body camera footage are generally granted unless the recordings are tied to an active investigation or otherwise exempt from disclosure. The proposed legislation would create a new exemption allowing law enforcement agencies to withhold body camera footage if the request is intended for commercial use, such as monetized social media content.
The bill specifically states that news media organizations would not be subject to the restriction. Still, open government advocates have raised concerns.
In a statement to News 12, the New Jersey Foundation for Open Government said, "A commercial purpose and public accountability are not necessarily mutually exclusive. While alternatives to the proposal should be considered, the current proposal, in our view, is likely to harm transparency without any corresponding public benefit."
Supporters of the measure, however, argue the issue is not about restricting public oversight of police.
"This isn't about transparency. This isn't about the public accountability of law enforcement," said Caggiano. "This is about monetizing somebody's worst day for someone else's gain."
