St. Charles County officials are putting off the purchase of body cameras for police until state lawmakers clarify what images captured by the cameras would have to be made available to the public.
The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports that County Executive Steve Ehlmann wants wording added to Missouri's open meetings and records law that limits the release of body-camera footage so that it can't be abused. Ehlmann says the footage should be available only for police to defend themselves against accusations of mistreatment, or for a victim to show that he or she was mistreated.
Ehlmann is concerned that some people may simply be nosy and will seek to look at footage for no legitimate reason.
