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Minutes for SB360 - Committee on Judiciary
Short Title
Amending open records laws relating to copies of public records and disclosure of law enforcement recordings using a body camera or vehicle camera.
Minutes Content for Tue, Feb 13, 2018
Chairman Wilborn opened the hearing on SB360 - Amending open records laws relating to copies of public records and disclosure of law enforcement recordings using a body camera or vehicle camera. Jenna Moyer provided an overview of the bill. (Attachment 3)
Senator Molly Baumgardner spoke in favor of SB360 commenting that it would lead to increased trust in communities by increasing transparency. (Attachment 4)
Representative John Alcala supported SB360 and noted efforts to increase transparency in Kansas are often thwarted because of fear and an unwillingness to change. The Representative answered questions from the committee. (Attachment 5)
Max Kautsch gave support for SB360 and contrasted the differences in the handling of two recent cases, one in Wichita and one in Topeka. (Attachment 6)
Kent Cornish offered support for SB360 stating the bill was not about media versus law enforcement. He believes law enforcement officers will most often be shown to have made the right decision but denying access to body or vehicle camera videos can be perceived as a cover up. (Attachment 7)
Ron Keefover commented in giving support for SB360 that people fear and mistrust the unknown. He believes speedy release of body and vehicle camera videos helps to deal with this. (Attachment 8)
Doug Anstaett supported SB360 and pointed out the bill only kicks in when there is cause to question whether the use of force was appropriate. (Attachment 9)
Heather Joyce gave support for SB360 and told of the difficulties her family experienced in accessing police records following the death of her brother-in-law, Dominique White. She believes the bill is a step in the right direction. (Attachment 10)
Sarah Oglesby-Dunegan expressed her support for SB360 and her concern about the discrepancies in interpreting body camera law which can lead to long delays in releasing videos for viewing by family members or by the public. (Attachment 11)
The Chairman asked if the committee had questions for proponent conferees; they did not.
Written testimony in support of SB360 was submitted by:
Molly White, step-mother to Dominique White (Attachment 12)
Mary Akerstrom, concerned citizen (Attachment 13)
Vignish Ganapathy, Policy Director for the American Civil Liberties Union of Kansas. (Attachment 14)
Greg Smith spoke in opposition to SB360 commenting that perspective matters and a body or vehicle camera does not have the same perspective as an officer's eyes. He expressed concern that the requirements of the bill would be unreasonable for small law enforcement departments. (Attachment 15)
Ramon Gonzalez, Jr., opposed SB360 and agreed that some aspects of the bill would not be reasonable for small departments. He would like the redacting requirements of bill to also apply when injury has been done to an officer. (Attachment 16)
Jeff Easter spoke against SB360 pointing out the video is only one piece of the fact gathering process. He expressed concern that some of the time requirements are unreasonably short. (Attachment 17)
Steve Menke opposed SB360 and indicated he believes mandatory public release of videos prior to the determination of criminal action may be particularly risky. He recognized the benefit of a uniform state-wide policy for releasing video evidence and expressed his concern that changes going forward be done right with all stake-holders having opportunity to provide input. (Attachment 18)
Amanda Stanley provided comments in opposition to SB360 while recognizing that members of their organization have differing views on the issue. Ms. Stanley pointed out aspects of the bill that would be very costly for municipalities and commented on the timing issues which would be created by sharing equipment between departments. (Attachment 19)
The Chairman noted written testimony in opposition to SB360 by:
Cheryl Whelan, Assistant Attorney General, Office of the Attorney General (Attachment 20)
Blaine Dryden, President, Kansas State Lodge of the Fraternal Order of Police (Attachment 21)
Thomas Hongslo, Policy Chief, City of Lenexa (Attachment 22)
Melissa Wangeman, Kansas Association of Counties (Attachment 23)
Kim Parker addressed the committee on SB360 from a neutral position. Ms. Parker asked the committee to consider the time frames as being too short. She also commented that an early release of video can benefit the community but could potentially hinder an investigation. She believes it would be valuable for family members to have some say about the release of videos to the public. (Attachment 24)
Opponent conferees answered questions from committee members.
Chairman Wilborn closed the hearing on SB360.
