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The California chapter of the American Civil
Liberties Union said the app will send the video to the
organization and preserve it even if a phone is seized by police
or destroyed.
The launch of the ACLU's "Mobile Justice CA" app comes as law
enforcement agencies face scrutiny over the use of lethal force,
especially against African-Americans, following several
high-profile deaths of unarmed black men in encounters with
police over the last year in the United States.
"It's critical that people understand what is being done by
police officers, because what is being done is being done in the
name of the public," said Hector Villagra, executive director of
the ACLU of Southern California.
The app is targeted at residents of the most populous U.S.
state, but ACLU chapters have launched similar mobile apps in at
least five other states, including New York, Missouri and
Mississippi over the last three years.
It also sends an alert to anyone with the app who might be in
the area, giving them an opportunity to go to the location and
observe, the ACLU said.
Villagra said the ACLU, in looking at which cases to delve into
more deeply, will prioritize those that come with a written
report, which is another element users can submit through the
app. Records of incidents from users living in other states will
be sent to ACLU officials there, he said.
ACLU officials advised anyone interacting directly with officers
who wants to use the app to announce they are reaching for a
phone, because officers might mistake the device for a weapon.
A representative from the California Peace Officers Association
declined to comment immediately on the app.
In the past, advocates for police have expressed concern that
people videotaping officers might interfere with their duties in
an already tense situation.
This week in Los Angeles, the city's Police Commission approved
rules governing the use of body cameras as its police department
moves toward becoming the largest in the nation to put the
devices into widespread use.
(Reporting by Alex Dobuzinskis; Editing by Daniel Wallis and
Lisa Lambert)
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