The Ohio legislature has passed a bill that would ensure most police camera videos are public record.
With unanimous support from the House and Senate, House Bill 425 now heads to the governor's desk.
The bill would impact both dash cams and body cams, andOhio News Media Association President Dennis Hetzel says it strikes the balance between transparency and privacy.
"What some other states have done that we've really been quite opposed to would be basically making them open only at the discretion of law enforcement," Hetzel said. "That's not gonna preserve transparency and accountability, no matter how well-intentioned the authorities may be."
The bill says a body camera video is public record unless it is a confidential investigatory record, a video within a private home or business, or a video of a sex crime victim.
The Ohio Senate passed the bill unanimously, and the Ohio House on Thursday unanimously agreed to the Senate amendments.
“I think the bill that we have is probably one of the better ones in the country, because it does preserve the presumption of openness that should be attached to all public records, including these videos, but does carve out some new exemptions and exceptions to deal with some of the issues these cameras raise,” Hetzel said.
The bill does not specify when body cameras must be activated.