JOSHUA WOLFSON Star-Tribune staff writer | Posted: Friday, February 16, 2007 12:00 am
On videotape, Kerri Johnson's client didn't look drunk.
The man was on trial for driving under the influence, but the video of his arrest, shot from inside a Wyoming Highway Patrol car, didn't show someone who looked intoxicated.
Jurors ultimately acquitted the man and Johnson, a public defender, believes the footage played a role.
It's just one example of how cameras in patrol cars can influence the outcome of trials.
"Generally speaking, I think most trial lawyers would say demonstrative evidence is really powerful for jurors," Johnson said.
The Wyoming Highway Patrol has had cameras since the late 1980s, and the footage has been shown in many trials, particularly drug and DUI cases.
Last summer, the Casper Police Department installed cameras in its marked patrol cars. Over the next few months, footage from those cars is expected to begin showing up in Natrona County courtrooms.
Many Casper attorneys believe that's a good thing.
"It's a natural human inclination to want to have as much objective evidence as possible," said Assistant 7th District Attorney Kenneth Marken. "If there is a videotape, and if it shows something you can prove, that's helpful."
Video footage can be useful for a variety of reasons. It can prove whether a suspect consented to a search or appeared drunk. It can depict exactly how a pursuit happened. It can show whether police followed proper procedures and were justified in the use of force.
"On individual cases … the jury gets to see what happened themselves, instead of having a version of events filtered through the hopes and wishes and desires and prejudices of witnesses," said Michael Krampner, a prominent Casper defense attorney (who has sometimes represented the Star-Tribune).
Patrol car cameras can help prosecutors as well as defense attorneys. Seventh District Attorney Michael Blonigen remembers a drug case where a man claimed that he didn't give an officer consent to search his car. Footage from the patrol car showed otherwise.
"That's a case where it saved us from going to trial," Blonigen said.
In many drunk-driving cases, the cameras can show jurors just how much a driver was swerving or how unsteady he was on his feet.
"Obviously if you have a drunk-driving suspect, for example, it is a little more assuring to hear the driver slurring his words or seeing him stumble around," Marken.
Sophisticated system
Last June, the Casper Police Department spent about $250,000 installing cameras in its patrol fleet.
The system is much more than merely a camera mounted in the front of the car. In fact, the cars have two cameras, one that records digital footage from a small box mounted near the rear-view mirror, and a second that captures action from the prisoner cage in the back seat.
The camera system continuously stores 30 seconds worth of video and audio until the officer puts it into record mode, said Casper police Sgt. Mark Trimble, who oversees the system. At that point, everything the camera records is saved until the officer shuts down the system.
In addition to the audio and video, the system tracks the date, time, direction and speed of the police vehicle, as well as its location.
Recording is started in several ways, Trimble said. It automatically begins when an officer activates the car's blue-and-red lights. An impact, such as a car accident, will also start the recording.
An officer can also turn on the recording by activating a microphone on his body, or by pushing a button inside the car.
Up to 36 hours of footage is stored in a hard drive mounted in the car's back seat, Trimble explained. At the end of an officer's shift, he or she can download the footage into a secure server at the Hall of Justice through a port in the trunk.
A few defense attorneys have already asked to see footage shot from Casper police cars, said Assistant City Attorney Gary G. Way. It hasn't been used at a trial yet, but over the next couple of months, that will likely change.
"We've got several cases where video was used that we will more than likely introduce as evidence if and when we go to trial," he said.
Video benefits
Cameras can be especially valuable in interviews since they capture a person's inflection, rather than just their words. A phrase like, "I shot the clerk," could be stated as a question or a confession, Johnson points out.
"You can see those things on tape," she said. "It makes a difference some times."
Camera footage protects officers and suspects alike, she said.
"Realistically, it benefits both sides because we both know exactly what happened," she said.
Last year, it was even used to help show that a Wyoming Highway Patrol trooper was justified when he shot and killed a woman who was resisting arrest during a June traffic stop.
Of course, video can be deceiving. For instance, the District Attorney's Office once had a case where a drunk-driving suspect had a high blood alcohol level, but looked perfectly fine on tape, Marken said.
There are other problems. After all, cameras can't show what happened before or after recording began, or the action occurring off screen. A camera could provide particularly compelling footage for a jury, but without the proper context.
"Can it lead to part of the story being overemphasized? Yes," Blonigen said. "That is one concern you have as a trial attorney on either side."
Still, camera footage from patrol cars is more helpful than harmful, he continued. It can be very persuasive evidence, and ensure that witnesses stay truthful.
"You darn well better not be fudging on things that are on the camera," he said.
Reach Joshua Wolfson at (307) 266-0582 or at josh.wolfson@casperstartribune.net.