HomeMy WebLinkAbout2017 11-27 Arbitrator ends police body camera lawsuit in Maplewood MAPLEWOOD REVIEW
Arbitrator ends police body camera
lawsuit in Maplewood
Submitted by admin on Mon, 11/27/2017 - 10:34am
A lawsuit about Maplewood’s police body-worn camera policy ended Oct. 28 when an arbitrator ruled in
favor of the city.
The Maplewood Police Department updated its body-worn camera policy Nov. 15, 2016, and three days
later, the union for Maplewood police officers filed a lawsuit in Ramsey County District Court about the
way the policy was drawn up.
The goal of the lawsuit was to require Maplewood to formally bargain over two specific provisions in the
new body-camera policy: general surveillance of officers by their supervisors, and the right of officers to
review body-camera videos prior to giving statements when critical incidents occur.
“Upholding these provisions helps ensure transparency and accountability in police-community
relations,” said Maplewood City Manager Melinda Coleman in a recent statement.
Paul Schnell, who was the Maplewood public safety director at the time, told the Review in Nov. 2016
that the city decided those provisions were not subject to collective bargaining, and that there were at
least two formal sessions where police administrators met and conferred with the union.
He added that as a result of those meetings, the department did adopt some of the recommended
changes.
In addition, the city sought input from numerous community groups before finalizing the policy.
Input was received from a resident workgroup, the Ramsey County Attorney’s Office, the Minnesota
Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, the
Minnesota Coalition on Government Information and the Minnesota chapter of the American Civil
Liberties Union.
“The city feels the development of this policy was fair and forthcoming, taking both the citizens and
officers’ perspectives into account,” Coleman said in a statement.
“The police department feels body-worn cameras are a tremendous evidence-gathering and
accountability tool that help our officers in the field and solve crimes,” police Chief Scott Nadeau,
Maplewood’s current director of public safety, said in a recent statement. “In the majority of cases,
body-worn camera footage vindicates the officer and protects police from unwarranted misconduct
claims.”
Almost a year after the lawsuit was filed, the matter was settled by the arbitrator’s Oct. 28 decision.
Isaac Kaufman, who serves as general counsel for the police union, Law Enforcement Labor Services,
said the union will not be appealing the decision.