Sumner Council Approves Police Body Cam Policy

SUMNER, WA — A proposal to outfit Sumner Police officers with body cameras is moving ahead this week.

At the City of Sumner's regularly-scheduled council meeting Monday, council members unanimously approved a proposal to begin the process of procuring cameras and training officers in their use.

Under that proposal, officers would need to wear cameras and turn them on:

• When they leave a patrol vehicle to any dispatched law enforcement activity.
• When they begin a police pursuit or tailing.
• During stops and field interviews.
  • This includes traffic stops and when helping stranded drivers.
• Any other contact that "becomes adversarial after the initial contact," IE situations that didn't require body cam use at first, but have escalated.

Officers are allowed a few exceptions, such as when they are in the bathroom, or when victims require privacy (like during interviews with children or sexual assault victims). Officers will also be allowed to argue cases where they believe recording would have been unsafe or impractical.

City leaders say they chose to implement this policy not because they were required to, or because of any recent concerns with the Sumner Police Department, but just to increase transparency following the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis and the national conversation about policing and racism in America.

"To offer more transparency for everyone, we’re pursuing body-worn cameras. We chose to implement body-worn cameras without a State mandate or political pressures, but because we believe in our City’s vision to set the standard of excellence for a progressive small city," wrote Sumner Mayor Bill Pugh.

According to Sumner Police Chief Brad Moericke, Sumner Police are one of just 59 law enforcement agencies that are fully accredited by the state, meaning they pass or exceed 132 of the state's standards in policy and practice. Moericke also suspended the use of the choke hold following Floyd's death last summer.

>> Read the full text of the proposed body-worn camera policy.