CJ Griffin Quoted in Law.com regarding Overturned Conviction After Officers Muted Body-Cam Audio
CJ Griffin, Director of the Justice Gary S. Stein Public Interest Center at Pashman Stein Walder Hayden, was quoted in the Law.com article, “Audio on Mute: Case Questions Whether Cameras Inspire Trust in Law Enforcement.” The article discusses a recent case in which the defendant’s conviction on charges of impaired driving was vacated by a Monmouth County Superior Court after the arresting officer changed his story multiple times about why the sound was turned off on his Body-Cam during the arrest.
Hitting the mute button on a video camera during an arrest is “very problematic,” said CJ Griffin, an attorney at Pashman Stein Walder Hayden in Hackensack who advocates for police reform and accountability. Officers are only allowed to deactivate the cameras under “limited circumstances,” she said.
“We have body cams for a reason: to record entire encounters so that they can serve as an accurate record of what happened. If officers shut their cameras or the audio off, it undermines the very purposes of having the cams,” Griffin said.
“We need strong consequences for officers who strategically turn off the video or audio on a camera,” Griffin said.
To view the full article, click here.
This article was also featured in the New Jersey State Bar Association’s Daily Briefing, August 8, 2022.