Bill Text: CA SB691 | 2025-2026 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Body-worn cameras: policies.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Introduced) 2025-02-21 - Introduced. To Com. on RLS. for assignment. To print. [SB691 Detail]
Download: California-2025-SB691-Introduced.html
CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE—
2025–2026 REGULAR SESSION
Senate Bill
No. 691
| Introduced by Senator Wahab |
February 21, 2025 |
An act to amend Section 832.18 of the Penal Code, relating to body-worn cameras.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
SB 691, as introduced, Wahab.
Body-worn cameras: policies.
Existing law requires law enforcement agencies, departments, or entities to consider specified best practices regarding the downloading and storage of body-worn camera data, such as specifically stating the length of time that recorded data is to be stored, when establishing policies and procedures for the implementation and operation of a body-worn camera system, as specified.
This bill would require, on or before July 1, 2026, each law enforcement agency that has a body-worn camera policy to update that policy to prohibit personnel who wear body-worn cameras from intentionally recording a person undergoing a medical or psychological evaluation, procedure, or treatment. The bill would require the policy update to include a procedure for personnel who wear body-worn cameras to follow if requested by emergency medical services personnel to stop
recording a person undergoing a medical or psychological evaluation, procedure, or treatment.
By requiring local law enforcement agencies to adopt new policies, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program.
The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.
This bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to the statutory provisions noted above.
Digest Key
Vote: MAJORITY Appropriation: NO Fiscal Committee: YES Local Program: YESBill Text
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
SECTION 1.
Section 832.18 of the Penal Code is amended to read:832.18.
(a) It is the intent of the Legislature to establish policies and procedures to address issues related to the(b) When establishing policies and procedures for the implementation and operation of a body-worn camera system, law enforcement agencies, departments, or entities shall consider the
following best practices regarding the downloading and storage of body-worn camera data:
(1) Designate the person responsible for downloading the recorded data from the body-worn camera. If the storage system does not have automatic downloading capability, the officer’s supervisor should take immediate physical custody of the camera and should be responsible for downloading the data in the case of an incident involving the use of force by an officer, an officer-involved shooting, or other serious incident.
(2) Establish when data should be downloaded to ensure the data is entered into the system in a timely manner, the cameras are properly maintained and ready for the next use, and for purposes of tagging and categorizing the data.
(3) Establish specific measures to prevent data tampering, deleting, and copying,
including prohibiting the unauthorized use, duplication, or distribution of body-worn camera data.
(4) Categorize and tag body-worn camera video at the time the data is downloaded and classified according to the type of event or incident captured in the data.
(5) Specifically state the length of time that recorded data is to be stored.
(A) Unless subparagraph (B) or (C) applies, nonevidentiary data including video and audio recorded by a body-worn camera should be retained for a minimum of 60 days, after which it may be erased, destroyed, or recycled. An agency may keep data for more than 60 days to have it available in case of a civilian complaint and to preserve transparency.
(B) Evidentiary data including video and audio recorded by a body-worn
camera under this section should be retained for a minimum of two years under any of the following circumstances:
(i) The recording is of an incident involving the use of force by a peace officer or an officer-involved shooting.
(ii) The recording is of an incident that leads to the detention or arrest of an individual.
(iii) The recording is relevant to a formal or informal complaint against a law enforcement officer or a law enforcement agency.
(C) If evidence that may be relevant to a criminal prosecution is obtained from a recording made by a body-worn camera under this section, the law enforcement agency should retain the recording for any time in addition to that specified in subparagraphs (A) and (B), and in the same manner as is required by law
for other evidence that may be relevant to a criminal prosecution.
(D) In determining a retention schedule, the agency should work with its legal counsel to determine a retention schedule to ensure that storage policies and practices are in compliance with all relevant laws and adequately preserve evidentiary chains of custody.
(E) Records or logs of access and deletion of data from body-worn cameras should be retained permanently.
(6) State where the body-worn camera data will be stored, including, for example, an in-house server that is managed internally, or an online cloud database that is managed by a third-party vendor.
(7) If using a third-party vendor to manage the data storage system, the following factors should be considered to protect the
security and integrity of the data:
(A) Using an experienced and reputable third-party vendor.
(B) Entering into contracts that govern the vendor relationship and protect the agency’s data.
(C) Using a system that has a built-in audit trail to prevent data tampering and unauthorized access.
(D) Using a system that has a reliable method for automatically backing up data for storage.
(E) Consulting with internal legal counsel to ensure the method of data storage meets legal requirements for chain-of-custody concerns.
(F) Using a system that includes technical assistance capabilities.
(8) Require that all recorded data from body-worn cameras are property of their respective law enforcement agency and shall not be accessed or released for any unauthorized purpose, explicitly prohibit agency personnel from accessing recorded data for personal use and from uploading recorded data onto public and social media internet websites, and include sanctions for violations of this prohibition.
(c) (1) On or before July 1, 2026, each law enforcement agency that has a body-worn camera policy shall update that policy to prohibit personnel who wear body-worn cameras from intentionally recording a person undergoing a medical or psychological evaluation, procedure, or treatment.
(2) The policy update shall include, but not be limited to, a procedure for personnel who wear body-worn cameras to follow if requested by emergency medical services personnel to stop recording a person undergoing a medical or psychological evaluation, procedure, or treatment.
(3) This subdivision shall not be construed to limit the protections of the Confidentiality of Medical Information Act (Part 2.6 (commencing with Section 56) of Division 1 of the Civil Code) or the federal Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (Public Law 104-191).
(c)
(d) (1) For purposes of this section, “evidentiary data” refers to data of an incident or encounter that could prove useful for investigative purposes, including, but not limited to, a crime, an arrest or citation, a search, a use of force incident, or a confrontational encounter with a member of the public. The retention period for evidentiary data are subject to state evidentiary laws.
(2) For purposes of this section, “nonevidentiary data” refers to data that does not necessarily have value to aid in an investigation or prosecution, such as data of an incident or encounter that does not lead to an arrest or citation, or data of general activities the officer might perform while on duty.
(d)
(e) This section shall not be interpreted to limit the public’s right to access recorded data under the California Public Records Act (Division 10 (commencing with Section 7920.000) of Title 1 of the Government Code).
