Metro to allow public viewing of body cam video

Las Vegas police will allow the public to view some footage from officer body cameras starting next week.

Viewing will require formal applications, according to the dissemination policy. Fill them out on lvmpd.com or at Metro headquarters, 400 S. Martin Luther King Blvd. Requests can also be made over the phone at 702-828-8947, or via email at bwcrecordquest@lvmpd.com.

Metro will set up appointments for approved requests. Viewing will take place at police headquarters.

Watching will be free. Having a copy made also will be free, unless redaction is necessary. The redaction fee will be billed at $48 per hour and can be billed in quarter-hour increments. So if the redaction process takes under 15 minutes, it will cost $12, and 15-30 minutes will cost $24, etc...

The process is expected to go into effect by the end of next week.

Recordings that are part of an ongoing criminal investigation will not be viewable until it has been submitted in court, Metro said. Footage that is part of internal investigations won't be available for screening until the case is closed.

Contact reporter Colton Lochhead at clochhead@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-4638. Find him on Twitter: @ColtonLochhead