Anchorage police say long-standing state practice prohibits release of body camera shooting video

Anchorage police are facing growing pressure to release body-worn camera video after officers fatally shot a man outside his West Anchorage apartment complex in mid-May.

But designated Police Chief Bianca Cross cites a long-standing position taken by the state's Office of Special Prosecutions as a determining factor in her decision not to release the video — even though she has the legal authority to stream it now.

An Alaska Department of Justice spokeswoman said the agency has for years shared its position that law enforcement should not release footage that could be considered evidence until after end of a state review into whether a shooting was justified or criminal. charges should be filed.

The May 13 shooting, the first involving Anchorage officers wearing body cameras, is seen as a test of the department's transparency.

Four police officers fatally shot Kristopher Handy, 34, outside a West Anchorage apartment complex. Security footage of the shooting, captured from a nearby apartment and widely shared online, raised questions about the police account of the confrontation.

Last weekend, about 80 people marched to the Anchorage Police Department headquarters to protest the decision not to release body camera footage. Handy's family says he did not “brandish a long gun” at responding officers, as police initially described. It is not clear from surveillance video whether he raised the gun.

Police department policy allows Cross to proactively release footage of such shootings, but she has repeatedly said she will not do so until internal investigations by the Office of Special Prosecutions and APD are complete, which could take months.

In a letter to the Anchorage Assembly on Friday, Cross cited the Law Department's “longstanding practice that evidence in a criminal investigation should not be released until after the review of the incident has been completed by the prosecutor” as one of the reasons why it was not disclosed. releasing footage showing Handy's shooting.

“I have heard the call to release the body-worn camera footage, but this footage constitutes evidence,” Cross wrote. “While I recognize that I have the discretion under APD policy to release footage prior to the conclusion of this investigation, I must preserve the integrity of the investigation by refraining from doing so. do for the moment.”

Anchorage police began wearing cameras this year, more than two years after citizens voted to fund the technology through an annual property tax. The cameras are touted as a tool for law enforcement to increase transparency and improve public trust. But agencies across the country have consistently refused to release footage of police shootings in a timely manner, raising questions about their public access.

In Anchorage, the Alaska Black Caucus pressured police to speed up the deployment of body cameras.

Today, Rich Curtner, co-chair of the group's justice committee, said officials should prioritize completing an investigation within 10 days and releasing any shooting footage within that time frame.

“We've been advocating for body cameras for a long time — well, that's exactly why,” he said. “And now it seems that’s not enough.”

There is no clear timeline for how long investigations into police-involved shootings will take or how long the investigation into the May 13 incident will take.

The Anchorage Police Department's homicide unit gathers evidence, processes the crime scene and conducts interviews before forwarding the evidence to the Office of Special Prosecutions, Cross wrote in the letter to the Assembly. Once the state makes its decision, Anchorage police conduct an internal investigation to determine whether the officers involved violated policy or procedure.

The length of the state's investigation “depends greatly on the complexity of the case, the amount of information to be reviewed, and whether we await additional testing or reports necessary for a full review ( i.e. autopsy, DNA, ballistics, fingerprints) to be completed and received,” Department of Justice spokeswoman Patty Sullivan said in an email.

Anchorage police said Handy's case was turned over to the Office of Special Prosecutions on Wednesday.

All shootings in Alaska have been deemed justified by prosecutors in recent years.

[When Alaska police use deadly force, who holds them accountable?]

State public safety officials also have the authority to proactively release body camera footage.

A fatal November shooting in Healy marked the first time Alaska State Troopers shot and killed someone while wearing body cameras. Police have not released images of the shooting that killed 45-year-old Michael Grimes, citing a Justice Department request as the main factor.

“While the decision to release body-worn camera video rests with our agency, we are certainly taking into consideration requests from the Office of Special Prosecutions which will ultimately determine whether or not to criminally charge a law enforcement officer who uses deadly force,” the spokesperson said. Austin McDaniel said in an email.

The Office of Special Prosecutions' investigation into Healy's shooting is ongoing. Sullivan said last week that prosecutors were awaiting a ballistics report in the case.

The state's position on the release of evidence “has been communicated repeatedly to APD and other law enforcement agencies across the state for many years,” Sullivan said. This practice ensures compliance with the Alaska Rules of Professional Conduct, rules of professional conduct for attorneys that limit what information can be provided publicly before trials begin, she said.

The Law Department's position ensures that jurors are not exposed to information about a criminal case outside of the courtroom that could jeopardize a conviction, Sullivan said. It also complies with attorney ethics rules that limit what information can be provided publicly before a trial, she said.

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