Nearly two dozen Chicago Police officers and supervisors have been disciplined over the improper use of dashcam video and audio.
Twenty-two officers were punished for not syncing audio to cameras and not uploading video at the end of their tours, according to Chicago Police Department spokesman Anthony Guglielmi.
In December, Interim Superintendent John Escalante issued a reminder that officers must comply with general orders in the use of in-vehicle video and audio, according to Guglielmi.
In the one-month period since the reminder was sent, the officers and supervisors that failed to follow orders received punishments varying from a warning to loss of leave or a three-day suspension, according to the Chicago Sun-Times.
The Department has since seen a dramatic increase in video uploads. Since Interim Supt. Escalante’s reminder, the number of videos that were updloaded properly jumped by 75 percent, according to Guglielmi.
The changes come after the November release of the Laquan McDonald shooting video, which contained no audio. Five Chicago police vehicles responded to the scene in 2014. At least two mounted police dashcameras recorded the video. None of the units recorded audio.
Escalante plans to meet with command staff to begin formal training of the department's new de-escalation policy Thursday, according to Guglielmi. Officers will also discuss the new Taser program.