Santa Ana Police Officers may soon have dashboard cameras in their cars that will automatically start recording car chases and emergency responses amid a host of police accountability questions raised this past summer.
At their 5:30 p.m. meeting on Tuesday, Santa Ana City Councilwoman Jessie Lopez is calling on her colleagues to direct staff to come back with a policy within three months requiring the installation of dash cams in all patrol vehicles to be automatically activated during a pursuit.
Councilman Ben Vazquez said it would be important to have that footage and it would improve the safety of both police officers and residents.
“The more video camera footage that we have, it’s going to work in our favor. It’s going to work in their favor. They’re going to be held accountable, because they know they’re being recorded,” he said in a Monday phone interview.
Councilman Johnathan Hernandez said the cameras will benefit residents by allowing officers to collect more video evidence, improve accountability and safety and increase transparency.
“Having dash cams in the vehicles and having cameras in the back seat of our vehicles also protects our police officers and ensures them that the city is taking their safety very seriously,” Hernandez said in a Monday phone interview.
“I also think this deters crime, and it also deters allegations.”
Hernandez previously called for cameras to be installed in police cars back during the budget season of 2023 but said the idea didn’t get enough support back.
Lopez, Mayor Valerie Amezcua, City Council members Thai Viet Phan, Phil Bacerra and David Penaloza did not respond to requests for comment Monday.
Santa Ana police officers currently use body-worn cameras and are required to turn them on when responding to calls for service with some exceptions including encounters with confidential informants.
Other law enforcement agencies, like the Los Angeles Police Department and the Orange County Sheriff’s Department, have implemented similar dash cam requirements with the latter requiring automatic in-car video recording when the overhead police lights are turned on.
“These policies have been shown to enhance transparency, reduce litigation risk, improve officer safety, and strengthen community trust,” reads Lopez’s request for the policy.
“This policy will ensure key incidents are consistently documented, improve the quality of evidence, reduce liability, and align SAPD operations with state best practices and legal standards.”
Tonight, city council members will also discuss behind closed doors a lawsuit brought forth by a Huntington Beach resident against a Santa Ana police officer, alleging the officer negligently drove a patrol car and crashed into her vehicle.
Hernandez said cameras in the police cars can help protect the city from lawsuits like that.
“Having multiple viewpoints in a police car is also going to offer a more complete record of police incidents, and it’s also going to protect the public and the officer from potential false claims during suspect transport or any interactions outside of a vehicle,” he said.
Hernandez said money for the cameras should come from the police budget.
In her request, Lopez points to public safety grants and money saved from lawsuits as potential funding sources.
Earlier this year, city staff estimated that elected officials will grapple with a $30 million deficit in four years when Measure X, a 1.5% sales tax measure approved in 2018, starts to sunset in 2029.
Tuesday’s expected discussion also comes amid increasing criticism about overall accountability in the police department.
This past summer, the Santa Ana Police Department faced intense public criticism for their response to protests against federal deportation sweeps and for failing to disclose their military equipment and how they used it for the past two years.
Vazquez said money for the dash cams could be pulled from money spent on military equipment.
“We already have a large amount of money in our police department, and I think some of those funds can go towards that,” he said. “We don’t need all the military grade weaponry.”
Amid the accountability questions, police officers filed harassment complaints against Hernandez – a staunch critic of the police union – while the union is demanding reporter Ben Camacho stop reaching out to its members to ask them questions or face legal actions.
[Read: Does Santa Ana’s Police Union View Criticism and Questions as Harassment?]
At the same time, elected officials – many of whose campaigns have been supported by the police union – have faced pushback from activists for considering an ordinance that they say would essentially gut the police oversight commission’s authority to hold officers accountable.
[Read: Will Santa Ana Neuter its Police Oversight Commission Before its Work Begins?]
Last week, the police oversight commission discussed the proposed ordinance originally brought up before the city council in July.
Tonight, city leaders are expected to discuss the ordinance again and direct staff on making changes to the police oversight commission.
Hosam Elattar is a Voice of OC reporter. Contact him at helattar@voiceofoc.org or on Twitter @ElattarHosam.
