Memoranda of Understanding and Body-Worn Camera Programs

Memoranda of Understanding and Body-Worn Camera Programs

Source

Body Worn Camera Training and Technical Assistance Program

A Memorandum of Understanding, or MOU, is an agreement between two or more parties that can be used to establish partnerships or collaborations.  Depending on the specific needs of individual law enforcement agencies implementing new Body-Worn Camera (BWC) programs, creating one or multiple MOUs may be beneficial in formalizing the expectations and responsibilities of all organizations involved.  This memo will cover three scenarios in which MOUs can be helpful: when forging agreements between two or more police departments, between police and prosecutors, and between police and other agencies.

MOUs Between Law Enforcement Agencies

Any time multiple police departments intend to collaborate on a BWC program, for example by sharing grant funds, data, or equipment, a MOU specifies the particulars of such an arrangement including what each party will contribute.  This can be particularly important in the case of shared grant funds when one department needs to be designated as the primary grantee.

The attached MOUs between law enforcement agencies provide examples of several collaborations between police from different departments.  Specifically, these include an agreement between two agencies in which one agrees to consult the other regarding the development of a new BWC program, an agreement between two departments in which one agency agrees to train multiple recruits belonging to the other agency in exchange for financial compensation, and two different agreements between multiple law enforcement agencies agreeing to collaborate on a new BWC program and to share grant funds should they be awarded.

MOUs between Police and Prosecutors

When police agencies are establishing a new BWC program, cooperation and involvement from local prosecutors is immensely beneficial.  Establishing an MOU between police and prosecutors may be useful in the development of a BWC program for several reasons.  First, prosecution may be able to advise police departments on policy matters relating to when BWCs should be turned on and off, public records requests, use of BWC footage in employment matters, and retention of BWC footage as evidence.  For example, prosecutors may advise that police refrain from recording conversations about probable cause before approaching a potential suspect.  Next, prosecutors may be able to help police agencies map out trainings for officers regarding the capturing of BWC footage and what types of video are most important in building cases for prosecution.  Finally, an MOU can also formalize the arrangements between police and prosecutors for viewing and sharing BWC footage. 

Attached are MOUs between police departments and City Attorneys, District Attorneys, and State Attorneys.  They establish support of police departments’ decisions to implement BWCs, formalize collaborations on the establishment of new policies and processes, address policy feedback, system selection, information sharing, and retention specifications, and even put forth the intention to establish a police department liaison and a State Attorney’s Office point of contact to ease BWC program-related communication between two agencies. 

MOUs between Police and Other Organizations

In addition to the aforementioned MOUs, law enforcement agencies may find it useful to establish MOUs with any other agency or organization that will be involved in a BWC program.  For example, this may include formalizing agreements between a police department and a research partner who will be in charge of independent evaluation and outcomes testing for a new BWC program.  Or, establishing an MOU between law enforcement agencies and schools can help clarify issues relating to the recording and storage of BWC footage containing juveniles and on school premises.  Finally, MOUs between police departments and other criminal justice and community stakeholders help ensure transparency and civility throughout the process of establishing new policies and procedures and implementing a fledgling BWC program.

The majority of the attached examples of MOUs between police and other community organizations express support for new BWC programs and set up intentions to collaborate on the development of new policy.  One MOU example establishes a research partnership between a police department and an institution of higher education, and another involves a Latino community organization promising to help its local police department gain community support for its new BWC program. 

Ultimately, MOUs can serve many purposes and can help police departments forge and solidify the alliances necessary to get new BWC programs established and operating efficiently.  Taking the time to create an MOU can be mutually beneficial to all parties involved.  While reasons for creating MOUs abound, the attached examples demonstrate some of the more common agreements and language involved in establishing the partnerships necessary to introduce and implement a new BWC program.  

Examples