Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7 Page 8 Page 9 Page 10 Page 11 Page 12 Page 13 Page 14 Page 15 Page 16 Page 17 Page 18 Page 19 Page 20 Page 21 Page 22 Page 23 Page 24 Page 25 Page 26 Page 27 Page 28 Page 29 Page 30 Page 31 Page 32 Page 33 Page 34 Page 35 Page 36 Page 37 Page 38 Page 39 Page 4014 AMERICAN POLICE BEAT: FEBRUARY 2017 I f your agency has bodycams but no bo- dycam policy – that’s a problem. In Colo- rado, a deputy’s un- disclosed use of a body-worn camera caused a mistrial in Teller County. However, no one has been disciplined for any infrac- tions five months later. In fact, the Teller County Sheriff’s Office hasn’t inves- tigated, according to Sheriff Mike Ensminger. In an interview with lo- cal newspaper The Gazette recently, Ensminger said an internal investigation was stymied in part by a judge’s gag order barring anyone at the Sheriff’s Office from discussing the case. But the gag order was lifted last October. The sheriff says he didn’t find out about that until Dec. 19. At that point he contacted the judge directly after a follow-up inquiry by the newspaper. “My hands were tied until I found that information out,” Ensminger told report- ers. The adoption of body- cams for law enforcement in the area has not gone smoothly. There was the accidental destruction of footage in more than 1,000 cases at the Fountain Police Department as well as multiple delays when the Colorado Springs Police Department tried to outfit all of their 600 officers with bodycams. The absence of an investi- gation by the Teller County Sheriff’s Office over the undeclared body cam use is interesting given the appar- ent indications that more than one deputy used a body camera in some capacity. In a Sept. 19 email ob- tained by the Gazette, Teller County prosecutor Chris Sutton acknowledged that changed his story saying that he’d been wearing a bodycam but had forgotten about it. Lilic told the court he was fitted with the camera on the day of Simmons’ arrest as part of a “trial run by the agency” to see if the cameras were effective at night, ac- cording to transcripts. He told the court that he recorded footage of Sim- mons’ arrest and handed it over to a corporal. The corporal handed it over to a commander. That commander alleg- edly ordered that the footage be destroyed because depu- ties could be heard using obscenities, a trial transcript shows. And that’s what caused the mistrial. District Judge Theresa Cisneros declared a mistrial and attorneys for the defen- dant then had all kinds of questions. Cynthia McKedy was representing Simmons. “How long have they been wearing body cams? Have they been destroying the foot- age?” McKedy asked. “How many other cases in Teller County have this issue?” As for the whole “trial run” program referred to by the deputy - it’s news to the boss. “No deputy of mine has ever been authorized to wear a body camera,” Ens- minger previously told The Gazette. “We don’t have a pilot program and never have.” Sheriff Ensminger also said his office can’t afford to purchase cameras for its deputies because they don’t have the funding or techno- logical capability to preserve the footage. Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department Deputy Kevin Ay, left, first met Sergeant Dar- rin Offringa in July 2010, three years before Ay was diagnosed renal failure. Thanks to a kidney donation from Offringa, Ay has a sec- ond chance. “I’m just honored and humbled by the experience and to have helped a good friend,” Offringa said. Ay said the donation has brought the two closer together. “I always considered Darrin as a mentor. Now he’s my brother,” Ay said. “deputies with Teller County Sheriff’s Office may have obtained body camera foot- age during some criminal investigations that may have been not retained or (turned over) to defendants.” Under Colorado law, bo- dycam footage gathered by officers equipped with body-worn cameras must be preserved and turned over to the de- fense. Failure to do so will produce an over- whelming likelihood of a mistrial. And while the Teller County Sheriff’s Office appears to have some bodycams, it does not have a way to store or distribute the footage. Current department policy has banned the use of bodycams for years. The controversy started last August after Deputy Sanel Lilic testified at a trial that he wasn’t wearing a body camera during his arrest of Cole Simmons on charges of vehicular theft. Lilic said that on the first day of testimony. But when he retook the stand later that day he Cop’s kidney donation is much appreciated Under Colorado law, bodycam footage gathered by officers equipped with body-worn cameras must be preserved and turned over to the defense. Failure to do so will produce an overwhelming likelihood of a mistrial. When cops have bodycams but no bodycam policies In Clark, New Jersey, state assemblyman Jamel Holley (D-Union) is facing a petty disorderly person charge of harassment that carries a $500 fine. The money isn’t the is- sue, says Roselle Mayor Christine Danserau. “This is about the fact that harass- ment is unacceptable,” she said. The mayor says she was the target of one of Holley’s obscene tirades. Clark municipal Prosecu- tor Jon-Henry Barr tried to dismiss the case based on the mayor’s complaint – saying that being yelled or sworn at doesn’t meet the threshold of a criminal act. But Dansereau’s attorney, Josh McMahon, disagreed and asked Municipal Court Judge Antonio Inacio to reject the motion to dismiss the case and instead con- duct a trial. The case was transferred from Roselle to Clark to avoid conflicts of interest. So what’s the all the hub- bub? Dansereau’s claims Hol- ley’ called her at Roselle Borough Hall and screamed at her, calling her a “f------ b----” Hint: It rhymes with “clucking switch.” “If every instance of this type was a crime, I’d be here all day,” Barr, the prosecutor said. Is getting cussed out enough to file charges?