crime records Archives - Page 13 of 19 - Tennessee Coalition for Open Government

12 Oct, 2015

TN Senate Judiciary hearing to include body camera legislation

By Deborah Fisher|2015-10-13T07:09:17-05:00October 12, 2015|Categories: crime records, Legislature|Tags: legislature, police body cameras, State Representative Brenda Gilmore, State Senator Sara Kyle|0 Comments

The Senate Judiciary Committee has scheduled a hearing at 10 a.m Monday, Oct. 19, to discuss several criminal justice issues, including the use of body-worn cameras by law enforcement. Many law enforcement agencies across the country are moving toward the use of body cameras as a way to improve policing and accountability after a series of high-profile incidents in which police were perceived to have used excessive force in dealing with suspects. Also, the federal government has begun to fund body-worn cameras at the local level through federal grants. But the use of body cams has raised several questions concerning disclosure of video under public records laws, citizen privacy, the cost of storage and redaction, [...]

22 Aug, 2015

Police records shed light on use of lethal force in Memphis

By Deborah Fisher|2016-01-06T09:21:13-06:00August 22, 2015|Categories: crime records|Tags: Memphis, police records, The Commercial Appeal|0 Comments

The Commercial Appeal published a story yesterday that examined 22 shooting deaths of suspects by Memphis police since 2009. It is a clear example of how access to public records can shed light on local government operations, providing citizens and community leaders support and information for better understanding and tackling a problem. The sheer volume of people shot and killed by Memphis police over a period of five years might be startling, but the Commercial Appeal went farther with its analysis after poring through police records, including video from a home surveillance camera showing an officer shooting an unarmed suspect in the back as he fled. From the story, "CA Investigation: [...]

13 Aug, 2015

Nooga.com: Police body cameras test privacy, transparency

By Deborah Fisher|2015-08-13T11:02:12-05:00August 13, 2015|Categories: crime records|Tags: ACLU, Chattanooga, David Morton, nooga.com, police body cameras|0 Comments

Nooga.com's reporter David Morton called me recently about the Chattanooga police chief's concerns about body cameras in Tennessee. His department plans to use them but he's concerned that the video would be public under the Tennessee Public Records Act. The issue is headed for some exposure. A summer study committee of the Legislature will be hearing comments on issues surrounding police body cameras the week of Oct. 19 after two bills were introduced last year that would require body cameras in local police departments and make all video from them confidential. There are some legitimate privacy concerns about the footage, but I urged that we be careful about changing the law [...]

1 Jul, 2015

Knoxville prepares new blanket ban on releasing dashcam video, waits for TN Supreme Court ruling

By Deborah Fisher|2015-07-01T09:28:44-05:00July 1, 2015|Categories: crime records|Tags: crime records, dashcam video, Knoxville Police Department, Ron Mills, Tennessee Supreme Court, Vanderbilt rape case|1 Comment

The Knoxville Police Department is waiting on a decision by the Tennessee Supreme Court before it puts into place a new blanket ban on release of all dashcam videos, sometimes indefinitely. In a story today by longtime crime and courts reporter Jaime Satterfield in the Knoxville News Sentinel, Knoxville's Deputy Law Director Ron Mills says: “You have to protect the integrity of not only your investigation but your prosecution. If there’s a pending appeal or within the possible time frame for a (post-appeal) relief petition, yes, it could be years. In the case of unsolved crimes, it could be indefinite.” The proposed policy would be a marked change for the Knoxville [...]

29 May, 2015

Supreme Court case will decide public access to police files

By Deborah Fisher|2018-08-06T08:57:49-05:00May 29, 2015|Categories: crime records, investigative exemption, public records lawsuits Tennessee|Tags: Janet Kleinfelter|0 Comments

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) - News media organizations on Thursday asked the Tennessee Supreme Court to rule that some police records should be open to the public, even during an investigation and trial, while attorneys for the government argued that court rules put those records off-limits. The Tennessean requested police records involving former Vanderbilt football players charged in the 2013 rape of a fellow student in a campus dormitory. Metro Nashville Police denied the request and the newspaper sued, along with other news media organizations, including The Associated Press. At a Thursday hearing, government attorneys argued that a court rule protects evidence in a police file from public scrutiny until after [...]