For defense attorneys
What to request in a body cam case, and how to get through it once it arrives
The video is only part of what a body camera system keeps. The rest sits beside it, and nobody hands it over unless you ask.
Short version: besides the footage, ask for the pre-event buffer and the department’s buffer setting, the evidence audit trail for every video, each camera’s device audit trail, the footage review policy, and every other camera that was there. Then plan for the hours of recording you will get back.
Five requests to add to every body cam case
Based on Harlan Yu’s NACDL article and Axon’s own help pages. Axon is the biggest body cam company in the country.
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The buffer before the button
Axon cameras hold a rolling loop while they wait and save it onto the start of each recording. Out of the box that is 30 seconds, video only, and departments can stretch it to two minutes. Ask for the setting. Newer Axon cameras also have Video Recall, an 18-hour buffer; ask whether it was on.
Why: in Baltimore in 2017, the buffer showed an officer putting down the soup can where he then “found” drugs. He was convicted of fabricating evidence.
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The evidence audit trail
Axon Evidence records each upload, view, clip, edit and deletion request on a video, with the user and the time. It exports as a PDF. Ask for every video’s trail over the whole life of the file.
Why: it shows what happened to the footage after it left the officer’s chest.
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The device audit trail
Each camera keeps its own log with battery level. Depending on the model and firmware, it can also show power on and off, recording start and end, and audio recording turned off.
Why: if the log shows a recording from 2:05 to 2:11 and you never got it, ask why. A camera said to have died has a battery history.
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When the officer watched the tape
A 2017 scorecard found more than 75 percent of major departments let officers review footage whenever they like, even after a use of force. Ask for the review policy and the officer’s user audit trail.
Why: the NACDL article says a report written while watching the video should not be treated as independent evidence.
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Every other angle
Other officers’ cameras, dash cams, and any business or home cameras nearby.
Why: in Marion County, Florida, in 2014, a body cam looked like a struggle and a building camera showed a man giving up. Four of the deputies pleaded guilty to federal civil rights charges.
Sources, Axon links and more detail on each request are in the full body cam discovery checklist on saveyatech.com.
Then the last step: actually getting through it
Do all five and the footage multiplies. Several officers, a dash cam, a corner store. That is the part this app is for. A criminal defense firm asked us to build it.
- TRANSCRIPTDrop in the video. Every line comes back timestamped.
- CONTRADICTSWhere the same person said two different things, you get both timestamps so you can go listen.
- FLAGGEDMoments worth a second look, each pointing back to the tape.
- COVERAGEWhere it heard nothing (silence, noise, or speech it missed), it says so instead of skipping past.
- LOCALIt runs on your own computer. In local mode the footage never leaves it.
What it will not do
- Replace watching. It is a finding aid that shows you where to look.
- Hear perfectly. Transcription mishears words, and bad audio stays bad audio.
- Tell you what an inconsistency means for your case.
- Finish instantly on an ordinary office PC. Start it and go do something else.
Or look at the sample case first, no download needed.
Not a law firm, and this is not legal advice. Check your own discovery rules and the department’s policies.