Sheriff: Body cams a welcome addition

SCOTT TRUXELL/independent editor

It’s been nearly six months since deputies with the Van Wert County Sheriff’s Office started using body cameras and according to Sheriff Tom Riggenbach, the addition has been well received by his department.

“They like having everything that transpires on video because they allow the deputies to go back to their body camera video to help them complete their reports and make sure they have all the information they need from conversations or conducting interviews with people on various calls,” Riggenbach said. “I think there’s a level of comfort from them because sometimes there might be somebody who is unhappy with how something played out and they may file a complaint and deputies know everything that transpired is on that body camera video.”

Riggenbach added the footage, which is reviewed, can be used for ongoing training purposes and he said in certain situations, body cameras can actually help de-escalate matters.

“The individual sees the body camera and they’re advised it’s active and for whatever reason, something clicks with them and at a minimum be the start of de-escalation,” he said. “With good communication from the deputies to the individual or individuals they’re working with they’re able to bring the heat of the moment down pretty quickly.”

Videos are stored for a period of time but the length varies from 30-45 for minor matters up to 2-3 years for more involved situations, including certain misdemeanors.

“Those things are somewhat set by statute and they’re somewhat set by our record retention policy,” Riggenbach said. We have 15-18 different retention categories that all this body camera video gets labeled with to work toward having the proper retention time.”

Deputies were outfitted with body cameras November 1, 2024. Prior to that, there was training for all deputies.

“The training process — we initially had a webinar with the vendor with a handful of my administrative and supervisory staff on how the system works, then that training included what other resources were for us to be able to utilize and get out to the employees,” Riggenbach said. “The initial training was recorded so we were able to push all this out to the employees for them to be able to go through,” the sheriff added. “We created a window of time for everybody to get that completed then be able ask any questions or present any concerns that had.”

Body cameras are turned on for nearly every interaction with the public, but there are some exceptions.

The addition of body cameras also meant the development of a policy for their use. The Sheriff’s Office uses CORSA (County Risk Sharing Authority) policies, which has adaptable policies in place.

“We took a look at that and we took a look at body camera policy through the Ohio Collabrative, as well as some other sheriff’s office policies, to really get a good grasp on all the different things to take into consideration,” Riggenbach stated. “I thought we put something together that works real well and is consistent with best practices, state law and, probably most importantly, being able to honor privacy for our citizens in situations where a body camera is not required under the law.

“There are circumstances where the homeowner might say ‘I don’t want to be recorded, I don’t want you recording inside my home’ and under certain circumstances within the policy we can honor that,” he added. “If it’s a situation where we’re executing an arrest warrant on an individual, that request doesn’t fit the policy that we have in place and so the body camera would not be shut off.”

In January 2024, it was announced the Sheriff’s Office would receive a state grant of just over $160,000 to purchase body cameras. However, that amount was only half of what was requested, leaving Riggenbach to figure out how to pay the remaining balance.

“I entered into an agreement with the vendor and I’ll be making an annual payment (10 years) that goes toward paying off that cost,” Riggenbach explained. “The progam includes some different updates and new cameras periodically so it really came down to finding an opportunity and a program that was going to allow me to spread out the remaining cost over a period of time with an amount that I could work into my budget.”

The Van Wert Police Department was outfitted with body cameras last year and troopers at the Van Wert Post of the Ohio State Highway Patrol started using them in 2022.