Requires the corrections director to adopt body camera policies by January 1, 2027, after stakeholder consultation, setting standards for activation, recording, access, retention, notice, and training,

Rhode Island Body Camera Policy Bill for Corrections Officers

This bill would require the director of Rhode Island's Department of Corrections to create and put in place official policies for the use of body cameras by corrections staff. The deadline for establishing these policies would be January 1, 2027. Before finalizing the rules, the director would be required to consult with relevant stakeholders — meaning people and groups with a direct interest in the issue, such as corrections officers, incarcerated individuals' advocates, and others — to make sure different perspectives are considered in shaping the policy.

The policies created under this bill would need to cover several specific areas: when officers must turn cameras on (activation), how recordings are made and stored, who can access the footage, how long recordings must be kept (retention), how people are notified that they are being recorded, and what kind of training corrections staff would receive on using the cameras properly. These rules would apply to staff working inside Rhode Island's correctional facilities, and the recordings would directly affect both corrections officers and the people who are incarcerated in those facilities.

Currently, this bill has been referred to the House Judiciary Committee, where it has been recommended to be "held for further study," meaning lawmakers are not yet moving it forward and want more time to review it. No final vote has been taken. If eventually passed into law, the bill aims to bring greater consistency, transparency, and accountability to how body cameras are used within Rhode Island's prison and jail system.