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Section 133.741 – Law enforcement agency policies and procedures regarding video and audio recordings; requirements; exceptions

May 14, 2021 | Criminal Procedure, Oregon

(1)

(a) A law enforcement agency shall establish policies and procedures for the use, storage and retention of video and audio recordings resulting from the operation of video cameras worn upon a law enforcement officer’s person that record the officer’s interactions with members of the public while the officer is on duty.
(b) The policies and procedures described in paragraph (a) of this subsection must include:

(A) A requirement that a recording be retained for at least 180 days but no more than 30 months for a recording not related to a court proceeding or ongoing criminal investigation, or for the same period of time that evidence is retained in the normal course of the court’s business for a recording related to a court proceeding.
(B) A requirement that a camera worn upon a law enforcement officer’s person be set to record continuously, beginning when the officer develops reasonable suspicion or probable cause to believe that a crime or violation has occurred, is occurring or will occur and the law enforcement officer begins to make contact with the person suspected of committing the offense. The policies and procedures must also require that the camera may subsequently cease recording no sooner than the termination of the officer’s participation in the contact.
(C) A requirement that in any contract with a third party vendor for data storage, recordings from the camera are the property of the law enforcement agency, are not owned by the vendor and cannot be used by the vendor for any purpose inconsistent with the policies and procedures of the law enforcement agency.
(D) A prohibition on the use of facial recognition or other biometric matching technology to analyze recordings obtained through the use of the camera.
(E) A prohibition on the use of any recordings obtained from the camera for any purpose other than a legitimate law enforcement purpose.
(c) Notwithstanding paragraph (b)(B) of this subsection, a law enforcement agency may in its policies and procedures provide for exceptions to the recording requirements of paragraph (b)(B) of this subsection, provided that the exceptions are based on reasonable privacy concerns, exigent circumstances or the safety of law enforcement officers or other persons.
(2) As used in this section:

(a) “Law enforcement agency” means an agency employing law enforcement officers to enforce criminal laws.
(b) “Law enforcement officer” means an officer employed to enforce criminal laws by:

(A) This state or a municipal government within this state;
(B) A political subdivision, agency, department or bureau of the governments described in subparagraph (A) of this paragraph; or
(C) A police department established by a university under ORS 352.121 or 353.125.

ORS 133.741

2015 c. 550, ยง 1

133.741 was enacted into law by the Legislative Assembly but was not added to or made a part of ORS chapter 133 or any series therein by legislative action. See Preface to Oregon Revised Statutes for further explanation.