Bodycam Footage for Sale: Ohio Joins the List of States Charging Money for Bodycam Footage, While Others Restrict It Entirely
by James Mills
Footage from police body cameras could soon become a pricey commodity in Ohio. Ohio has joined Arizona and Indiana on the short list of states that allow police departments to charge citizens, lawyers, journalists, and activists to access bodycam footage.
In Arizona, the charge is limited to a maximum of $46 per video-hour reviewed (taking into account “the reasonable cost” of copying and transmitting the footage). Indiana sets the upper limit at $150, citing the costs of officers’ time for such requests. Ohio’s bill (HB 315, signed into law in early January) allows police departments to charge up to $750 per video, including $75 per hour of footage. The bill’s supporters point to the time and expense of processing large volumes of public requests—costs that primarily burden local police departments with limited budgets.
Bodycam footage must be screened and often redacted when it reveals the identity of juveniles or sensitive personal details. Critics argue that since police departments are funded by taxpayers, all bodycam footage is already produced with public money. They emphasize the public interest in making such footage accessible to suspects, citizens, and journalists, noting that high fees undermine its role in promoting transparency and accountability.
Laws governing bodycam footage vary widely across states. Alabama, for instance, has relaxed statutes on requiring police to record bodycam videos but imposes strict limits on public access, releasing footage only by court order. Other states are even more restrictive. Kansas classifies all bodycam footage as a “criminal investigation record,” releasing it only to the involved individual (or their guardian or attorney) for a “reasonable fee.” In North Carolina, bodycam footage is a restricted administrative resource, available to the public solely under court order. In South Carolina, video from “body-worn cameras” is not subject to the state’s Freedom of Information Act, leaving release decisions to the discretion of police departments or officials. Absent unusual public pressure or institutional incentives, authorities typically do not proactively share such footage.
Ohio’s decision to place police bodycam footage behind a steep paywall marks a troubling retreat from the promise of accountability that these cameras were meant to deliver. As costs soar to as much as $750 per video, the very citizens who fund these recordings—through their taxes—are being priced out of oversight, leaving journalists, advocates, and victims of police actions with fewer tools to hold power to account. This is not just an Ohio problem; it’s a warning sign for a nation already grappling with uneven access to justice. Lawmakers must act swiftly to reverse this measure, ensuring that transparency isn’t a privilege for the few but a right for all. The public deserves nothing less than free and unfettered access to the footage that shapes our understanding of policing—because democracy thrives in the light, not behind a several-hundred-dollar paywall.
Sources: theintercept.com; azleg.gov; thehill.com; rcfp.org.
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