Village of Antioch properly denied body camera footage to restraining order petitioner not subject of encounter
Body camera footage of police serving a restraining order, requested by the petitioner in the restraining order matter.
Plain-language summary
Under the Law Enforcement Officer-Worn Body Camera Act (50 ILCS 706/10-20(b)), a requester may obtain body camera footage only if they are the subject of the encounter captured on the recording, or if the footage is flagged for a specific reason (e.g., arrest, use of force, or a complaint). The decisive fact here was that the requester was not present during the encounter and therefore was not a subject of the encounter, even though he was the petitioner in the restraining order matter. Because the footage was not flagged and the requester was not the subject, the Village was prohibited from disclosing it. The PAC rejected the requester's argument that being the petitioner made him a subject of the encounter, clarifying that the statute requires physical presence or visual depiction to qualify as a subject.
Legal question
Whether a requester who is the petitioner in a restraining order matter qualifies as a 'subject of the encounter' under the Body Camera Act so as to be entitled to obtain body camera footage of the service of that order.
Holding
The Village of Antioch properly denied the request for body camera footage because the requester was not the subject of the encounter and the footage was not flagged for disclosure under the Law Enforcement Officer-Worn Body Camera Act.
Summary
The requester sought body camera footage of police serving a restraining order in a matter where he was the petitioner. The Public Access Bureau determined no further action was warranted because the requester was not the subject of the encounter and the footage was not flagged for disclosure under the Body Camera Act.
Issues decided in this letter
Each question the Public Access Bureau decided, with the rule it applied. Extracted automatically from the letter; the source PDF is authoritative.
- No violation
Requester not subject of encounter captured on recording
Rule applied: Only a person who appeared in the recording and interacted with an officer during law enforcement activity is the subject of the encounter captured on the recording.
Authorities cited: Ill. Att'y Gen. Pub. Acc. Op. No 19-001; Ill. Att'y Gen. PAC Req. Rev. Ltr. 48793
- No violation
Footage not flagged for mandatory disclosure
Rule applied: Body camera recordings not flagged due to a complaint, firearm discharge, use of force, arrest or detention, or death or bodily harm are not subject to mandatory disclosure.