'Kill the bodycams': Utah cops who fatally shot Chase Allan were told to turn off their bodycams minutes after shooting
DAVIS COUNTY, UTAH: Police officers, who shot Chase Allan twelve times during a routine traffic stop, were instructed to turn off their body cameras just minutes after the fatal shooting. 25-year-old Allan was gunned down by five policemen from the Farmington Police Department in Davis County, Utah, on Wednesday, March 1, as his blue BMW 3-Series was parked outside a local post office.
Allan was shot and killed following what police have said was a routine traffic stop. Officers said that during the attempt to get Allan out of his car, multiple shots were fired. The five officers involved in the incident have been placed on administrative leave during the investigation.
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Kill your bodycams
According to Fox 13, about four minutes after the shooting took place, a first call went out over the radio to police in the parking lot of the post office, then another call about 16 minutes later.In the first call-out, officers who are off the scene are told to turn off their cameras. In the second, all officers on the Farmington incident are told to make sure the cameras are turned off.
The shots were fired at 3.27 pm on March 1. At 3.31 pm, the police officers were instructed, "If you're off the scene, you can go ahead and kill your bodycams." At 3.46 pm, a second transmission was heard saying, "Make sure that all the bodycams have been shut off now. 10-4. All units on the Farmington incident, make sure your bodycams are shut off."
What is the bodycam policy?
Most police departments make use of body cameras for the purpose of accountability and transparency but, in this case, they were ordered to turn them off. According to a report by the Daily Mail, Chief Eric Johnsen told that officers are asked to turn off their body cameras within a reasonable amount of time after an officer-involved shooting for a variety of reasons.
Even the Farmington PD's body camera policy states, "The portable recorder should remain on continuously until the member reasonably believes his or her direct participation in the incident is complete or the situation no longer fits the criteria for activation." But, now, the body cameras have been taken away by a supervisor in the wake of the incident with members of the Davis County Officer-Involved Critical Incident Response Team.