ACLU-DE Statement on Kadir Skinner Body-Worn Camera Footage and Urgent Need for Statewide Police Reform

Wilmington, DE—The following statement can be attributed to ACLU of Delaware Executive Director Mike Brickner:

“I am profoundly sorry that the family, friends, and loved ones of Kadir Skinner have gone through what can only be described as a tragedy. While I am relieved that officials have released the body-worn camera footage, I can only imagine that the last few weeks have been even more painful due to the uncertainty over when and whether it would be available to the public.

We must do better in this state. It is unacceptable that public access to body-worn camera footage is routinely denied by law enforcement. In the rare instance it is released, it is usually because the police or an elected official has chosen to do so. Our right to know should not be contingent on the generosity of officials; it should be a right explicitly guaranteed in the law.

The legislature must reform our Freedom of Information Act laws to explicitly require that all body-worn camera footage is presumed to be open to the public. Importantly, this should be for all incidents, not just shootings or fatalities. As we have seen in the recent incidents of the supposed “takeover” in Rehoboth Beach or the woman tased in Dover, access to body-worn camera footage is almost always in the public interest.

Transparency and accountability do not end with body-worn camera footage. Legislators must make police misconduct records public and allow police review boards to have real oversight powers.

But at the bare minimum, since we have decided as a state that every police officer should have a body-worn camera, then that footage must be available to the public.

The ACLU of Delaware will soon release a questionnaire to candidates in the state legislative elections, and we plan to ask their position on this issue and ensure the public is informed before they cast their vote. Justice demands we have elected officials who will stand up for what is right, and we will not stop advocating for it.”