Is police body cam video public in NC? How do you get it? Your questions answered.

The killing of Andrew Brown Jr. Wednesday by sheriff’s deputies in Elizabeth City has ignited protests and prompted wide-ranging demands for the release of body-worn camera video.

But under North Carolina law, sharing recordings captured by police and other law enforcement agencies isn’t as simple as uploading a video to YouTube.

Legislation signed into law in 2016 lays out a specific process law enforcement and members of the public — including the media — must follow before footage from body cameras or dashboard cameras can be released or even screened.

The News & Observer spoke with Mike Tadych, a Raleigh attorney who regularly fights on behalf of the news organizations for the release of law enforcement recordings, to explain the procedure.

Is police body cam video public record in North Carolina?

The short answer: No.

But unlike personnel or investigative records, it’s not automatically confidential either. Instead, body camera video is classified under a broader category of record called “law enforcement agency recordings,” which is anything recorded by or on behalf of police departments and sheriff’s offices. That includes dashboard-mounted cameras, too.

But because these records are in a sort of legal limbo, Tadych said, there are specific rules about who can see the body cam video and who can get copies of it — and there’s a difference between “disclosure” and “release.”

“There are two different paths and it depends on who you are,” Tadych said.

Can the family of someone shot by police view body cam video?

Under state law, certain people may be entitled to view body camera video, but they can’t take it with them.

That category includes people in the video or their designated representatives, such as a specific family member of somebody killed by a law enforcement officer in a recording.

That person must request disclosure of the video from the head of the law enforcement agency, which then decides whether to screen it.

“If law enforcement sees fit, they can show it to anyone authorized for disclosure, but they can’t get a copy or take a snippet of it,” Tadych said.

If the law enforcement agency refuses, the family member can then petition the court, without paying a fee, to force disclosure.

“The court has a lot of discretion on what they provide,” Tadych said.

If a person or a family member in the video wants a copy, they’ll have to petition the court directly.

Can the sheriff’s office release the video on its own?

No law enforcement agency in North Carolina has the unilateral power to release body camera video.

But an agency can initiate the process of release on its own. To do that, a police or sheriff’s department has to petition the court — again without paying a fee.

A judge then reviews the video and decides whether to release it during a public hearing.

Again, Tadych said, judges have “an enormous amount of discretion” here.

But in his experience, this is typically the fastest way to get the video in the hands of the public.

“It could be a matter of hours or just a couple of days,” he said.

Who else can ask for the release of the video?

The public, for one.

State law provides for a “general” petition for the release of body cam video, and that’s the route members of the media — including The News & Observer — frequently use. It costs the filer $200, unlike the other avenues used by family members or law enforcement.

The police or sheriff’s department has to turn over the video to a judge, who sets a hearing. Law enforcement agencies or the local district attorney can object to the release of the video in that hearing if, for example, they think it might hamper an investigation or contain information that would be otherwise confidential by law.

But it’s ultimately up to a judge to decide what to do.

That judge’s ruling may include the release of the video, or of certain parts. They can order some of it blurred or edited, or put other rules on how it’s handled.

How long does the process take?

In Tadych’s experience, the fastest route for release is when a law enforcement agency asks a court for an order to release the video. That might take hours or days, he said.

But if it’s the result of a general petition — by the media or a member of the public — Tadych said it generally takes less than a month. Even that’s a wide range: He’s been able to force the release of video in as little as nine or 10 days, but has also waited as long as six months.

And after years of fighting for body cam video in counties across the state, he said the turnaround time often depends on how many times the county, city or courthouse has dealt with the release of the recordings in the past.

“It is not an easy path to follow,” Tadych said. “Where we have the biggest issue is where the court personnel has no familiarity with the process.”