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OFFICE OF THE CITY CLERK
KAREEMAH FOWLER,CITY CLERK
INFORMATION & TECHNOLOGY AUGUST 14, 2017 4:30 P.M.
Committee Members Present: Tim Scott, Gavin Ferlic, Dr. David Varner, Randy Kelly,
Derrik Campeau(citizen member), Charles Barbour
(citizen member)
Committee Members Absent: None
Other Council Present: Regina Williams-Preston, Karen White, John Voorde,
Oliver Davis
Other Council Absent: Jo M. Broden
Others Present: Bob Palmer, Graham Sparks
Presenters: Scott Ruszkowski
Agenda: SBPD Body Cam Briefing-Chief Scott Ruszkowski
Committee Chair Tim Scott called to order the Information and Technology Committee meeting
at 4:30 p.m. He introduced members of the committee and proceeded to give the floor to the
presenter.
SBPD Bode Cam Briefing- Chief Scott Ruszkowski
South Bend Police Department Chief Scott Ruszkowski, 701 W. Sample Street, stated, Going
back to 1997, we were one (1) of the first, if not the first, to have video cameras and audio
recording capacity. Since then and presently, we have those as well as the body microphones. As
we move forward, we are looking at body cameras. I need to be careful because the bidding
process is still under way and I cannot disclose details that pertain to the decision making
process. We are looking at approximately seven(7) different companies. They vary between
many different factors. We are pretty confident we can move forward with the car cameras and
body cameras. Right now we are using four(4) different brands of car cameras and we have been
having issues with those. There has been a lot of rhetoric pertaining to police conduct. We had
103,183 calls for service in 2016. Of those, we did roughly 26,000 case reports. There were
2,600 arrests,not counting warrants. And out of those 2,600 arrests,we used force seventy-two
(72)times. Out of those seventy-two(72)uses of force,we had only three (3) complaints. I will
compare those numbers to any department in the country,per capita. I think our officers do a
phenomenal job and I don't think they get the credit that they deserve. That being said, we know
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it is still a sticking point. We do make mistakes,but that means everyone in our community does.
My press-point on this is focusing on mutual accountability. We are in this together and the body
cameras will show that. When the bid is awarded, we will move immediately to the in-car
camera portion. We will then involve everyone we can in the policy making process. There are
privacy issues, fourth and fourteenth amendment issues and other legal issues that are created
with the introduction of this technology. The community and all other stakeholders need to have
input on this. Once the bid is awarded, this process has already been budgeted for the 2017
budget.
Councilmember Voorde asked, Are the police officers in support of this?
Chief Ruszkowski replied, Absolutely. In fact, our officers have participated in every meeting
and workshop held by the Fraternal Order of Police regarding this matter. We have had a lot of
questions and have received a lot of answers, and I have not received anything negative other
than some officers asking themselves what more they need to do for the community to believe in
us. I'm hopeful by the end of quarter one (1) of next year's budget, all body cameras,
approximately one hundred and seventy (170), will be deployed.
Committeemember Charles Barbour asked, Working backward from the timeline, when would
you hope to begin deploying the systems? We've said September 12, 2017 is the date the bidding
closes, so how long will they start arriving? And between the arrival and deployment, when will
the policies be put into place?
Chief Ruszkowski replied, We already have the in-car camera and body mic policies in place.
We are still operating under those policies. We are, in the meantime, crafting policies to
incorporate adding the video to the audio we already have. It seems simple but now adding the
visual component, it means there will be areas of the public that will now be recorded and seen
on record.
Committeemember Derrik Campeau asked, Will there be extensive focus on the access of this
video?
Chief Ruszkowski confirmed, Yes. We have been meticulous and methodical in waiting to
implement this initiative.
Councilmember Oliver Davis asked Chief Ruszkowski how the Police Officers would like more
recognition in the services they provide. There was brief dialogue with possible ways to
recognize individual officers.
Councilmember Voorde asked, How is this year's recruitment going?
Chief Ruszkowski replied, It is going well and we have roughly three hundred(300) applicants.
Unfortunately, though, it still doesn't look like we are correctly reflecting the demographics of
what our community looks like. And back to the body cams, it is important to understand that not
everyone is entitled to evidence. These things are being recorded, but not everything is subject to
public viewing. We are making sure we iron those things out in the policy drafting that will
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accompany this process. There is also a strong possibility that we will see our community acting
in ways we never thought it would have. We have to be prepared for that.
The Committee then briefly discussed the need for storage capacity as well as the specifics of
different camera systems.
Committeemember Dr. David Varner stated, I think the term mutual accountability needs to be
repeated moving forward. It emphasizes the responsibility that everyone has surrounding this
issue. Body cameras will protect the citizens and protect the police and will hold everyone
accountable.
With no other discussion, Committee Chair Scott adjourned the Information and Technology
Committee meeting at 4:59 p.m.
Res ctfully Submitted,
Tim Sco airperson