ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. — A new Orange County Sheriff’s Office policy creates a timeline for when body camera footage of deputy-involved shooting should be released to the public.
The new protocol states that the video should be released no more than 30 days after the date of the incident, unless the sheriff determines there are “extraordinary circumstances” that necessitate the video release being delayed.
The sheriff’s office said if the release of the video is delayed beyond 30 days, a reason must be given.
“I think this will show the community that we are going to continue our commitment to be accountable and to be transparent in all of these situations,” Mina said.
Prior to the new policy there were no guidelines in place for the release of body camera video, which was not released until the Florida Department of Law Enforcement completed its investigation.
“They’ve told us over and over again they prefer not to release the video until after the initial interviews are done and that’s to keep the integrity of the investigations,” Mina said.
Officials said the deputy seen in the video along with victims or their families will be able to view the video before its released to the public.
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The department said the policy was developed following recommendations from the Orange County Sheriff’s Office Citizens Advisory Committee as well as input from the Florida Department of Law Enforcement and chiefs of all Orange County law enforcement agencies.
The policy change comes following protests pushing for the release of body camera footage of the fatal deputy-involved shooting of Salaythis Melvin outside the Florida Mall last August.
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There is no body camera video from the deputy who shot and killed Melvin because he was one of around 500 in the Orange County Sheriff’s Office at the time who was not assigned a body camera. Orange County Sheriff John Mina pledged to change that since the shooting.
“There are deputies this week getting body-worn cameras, so over the next several months there will be more and more deputies who receive those body-worn cameras,” Mina told Channel 9 investigative reporter Karla Ray last September. “The primary goal is to basically have every deputy who is having contact with the public, making arrests, to have body-worn cameras.”
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Channel 9 spoke with Mina on Tuesday about the new policy changes. Stay tuned to Eyewitness News starting at noon for live updates.
