Welcome back. I’m still Malachi Barrett.

A new law requires Detroit police to release body camera footage when an officer fires their weapon at a person or causes serious harm.

The City Council voted 8-1 to approve the ordinance, which requires the Detroit Police Department to post footage on a public website within 30 days, with some key exceptions.

Loopholes in the law prevented police accountability advocates from supporting the ordinance after pushing for more transparency. The exceptions were added to ensure the release of footage wouldn’t compromise criminal investigations, city officials said.

The ordinance was introduced by Council Member Angela Whitfield-Calloway after a year of work. She said it’s a “good start” that could be improved in the future, comparing the document to the U.S. Constitution, which was amended over time. Whitfield-Calloway said the ordinance ensures video to be released “within a reasonable time.”

“The greatest obstacle to a job well done is the quest for perfection,” Whitfield-Calloway said. “This document is not perfect. It’s going to continue to be amended like all ordinances are.”

Detroit resident Jacob Smith described it another way during a Monday public hearing.

“It’s not a perfect ordinance, it’s not even a good ordinance,” Smith said. “There’s more holes in it than a fishing net. Let me be clear: We do not trust (police).”

DPD Cmndr. Michael Parish said the department fully supports the ordinance. He said 30 days is an “aggressive timeline” to release videos, but claimed DPD already releases videos of police shootings in that timeframe. Parish planned to compile data to estimate how many incidents would be subject to the ordinance.

Council Member Gabriela Santiago-Romero was the lone no vote, saying she couldn’t support an ordinance that the community doesn’t agree with. Santiago-Romero noted loopholes in the law that prevent the release of footage captured during federal or state task force operations without the approval of those other agencies.

The ordinance is triggered when an officer “discharges their firearm in a manner that strikes, or that potentially could strike, another individual” or when a non-lethal weapon or use of force “results in death or great bodily harm.” 

Police can delay release for another 30 days. Release of footage can also be delayed at the request of the Wayne County Prosecutor’s Office until a charging decision has been made. It provides exemptions for footage captured during federal or state task force operations, footage that would be excluded under the Michigan Freedom of Information Act or footage determined by corporation counsel to be prejudicial to a civil matter.

Prior to releasing footage, the city must attempt to notify any person involved, or their family members, and give them a chance to review it. DPD can release compilations of edited footage, so long as it provides a “comprehensive view of the incident” provided that the footage portrays an accurate view of the incident and that there is continuous notice that the posting is a compilation of footage from the incident.

Detroit City Attorney Graham Anderson said Detroit’s law was modeled after a similar ordinance in Chicago. Police Chief Todd Bettison and Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy weighed in on the language, he said. Whitfield-Calloway said the discussions were “tense” at times.

A group of residents formed the Coalition for Police Transparency and Accountability to advance proposals like body camera disclosure. They were ultimately unsatisfied with the version presented, writing in a letter to Whitfield-Calloway that stronger language they presented was ignored.

Whitfield-Calloway tried to assure critics that the ordinance can be improved upon. She declined to comment further after Tuesday’s session.

“We’ve done our best, but everyone is not going to be happy with any of the ordinances that we pass,” Whitfield-Calloway said during Monday’s committee hearing. “We have habitual complainers about anything and a lot of them; never mind, I won’t even say what I really want to say.”

Advocates say the loopholes protect police misconduct because it includes provisions that allow  footage to be redacted or concealed. Victoria Camille, a candidate for the Board of Police Commissioners, said the civilian oversight body should have a role in deciding what footage is released. She said the ordinance is narrowly written to exclude incidents that people should see.

“We’ve had three people shot by DPD in the last month and two in the lastweek,” Camille said. “DPD should not get a privileged seat to shape a narrative in advance of the public getting a full view of unedited video. It’s one thing to blur faces of witnesses, but chopping up timelines or reducing frames is unacceptable.”

Scotty Boman, another candidate for the police oversight board, said the ordinance is flawed but better than nothing.

“Right now we don’t have anything with teeth to push forward the release of these videos,” Boman said during the Monday hearing. “Any movement in the direction of greater transparency is desirable.”

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What page are we on?

Today’s notebook covers the Oct. 28 formal session. Want this in your inbox? Sign up for free.

Dig into the agenda, read Detroit Documenter notes or watch the recording for more details.

The 2025 legislative session ends Nov. 25. The council will not meet on Tuesday, Nov. 4, due to the general election. That meeting was rescheduled to Friday, Nov. 14. Another recess day is scheduled for Nov. 11.

Early voting started Saturday. Check out our voter guide covering all City Council races.

Interviews with candidates are available on our podcast Detroit Next. Our election tracker provides regular updates on city races.

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Streets named for Detroit heroes

Five Detroiters were selected out of 23 candidates to be honored with secondary street signs.

• Imam Abdulla El-Amin: The intersection of Davison Avenue and Woodrow Wilson Street 
• Civil rights activist Viola Liuzzo: The intersection of Pembroke Avenue and Mansfield Street 
• Mudgie’s owner Gregory Mudge: The intersection of Brooklyn and Porter streets 
• Artists Kim Lamont “KEM” Owens: The intersection of Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard and Third Avenue 
• Civil rights activist Rev. JoAnn Watson: The intersection of Linwood Street and Tuxedo Street 

The annual process attracts a high amount of public interest, as it provides a chance to immortalize figures who had a significant impact on the city and its people. Read more about the winners here.

There were 140 people who spoke during public comment, most of whom were advocating for their preferred candidate. Council President Pro Tem James Tate said narrowing down the list to just five winners is always difficult, as “every one of these individuals are absolutely worthy of the honor we’re providing today.”

El-Amin was a leader in Muslim, Black and interfaith communities as longtime leader of the Muslim Center in Detroit. He died in 2023 and was nominated by Council Member Coleman Young II.

Liuzzo was a white civil rights activist who was murdered by members of the Ku Klux Klan in 1965. She was inspired by Martin Luther King Jr.’s visit to Detroit a year earlier, and he attended Liuzzo’s funeral service. She was nominated by Whitfield-Calloway.

Mudge opened Mudgie’s Deli in 2008 and was an active member of the Corktown community, notably helping to feed homeless residents. He was nominated by several residents and the city received 114 letters of support.

KEM is a legendary R&B artist who overcame addiction and homelessness and opened a nonprofit social service organization. He was nominated by Council Member Mary Waters.

Watson is a former City Council president, political activist, radio host and a founding member of Detroit’s reparations task force. She died in 2023 and was nominated by Council President Mary Sheffield.

Eight candidates were nominated in previous years but not selected. They are removed from the list after five years.

Janice Tillman, a historic planner with the Historic Designation Advisory Board, recommended the council make changes to the process to prevent them from having such a large list.

Public comment was reduced from two minutes to 30 seconds to allow everyone to speak. That rankled some residents who wanted to speak on other issues on the agenda. Detroiter Tyson Gersh said the shorter time window “completely removes the ability for the public to participate in government in any way.”