COLUMBUS, OH - The Columbus Dispatch reports that a police officer has been fired after he posted body camera footage to his personal YouTube channel without a public records request.
Now-former officer Spencer Badger, who runs the “Columbus Police Body Camera” channel on the social media site, was fired this week after the city’s public safety director, Kate McSweeney-Pishotti, concurred with a termination recommendation from Columbus Police Chief Elaine Bryant.
“The findings of the investigation are unambiguous. Officer Badger admits to violating division policy on multiple occasions,” McSweeney-Pishotti said in a statement provided to the media on Tuesday. “He admits to improperly and repeatedly downloading law enforcement materials to a personal device. As he told investigators, ‘I went back and looked at the policy again, and I realized that sure, it’s written in black and white, pretty hard to miss.’”
“Abuse of law enforcement materials for personal purposes violates the law and Columbus Division of Police policy. This is no simple mistake or one-time oversight. It is critical misconduct,” she wrote.
A press release from the Fraternal Order of Police Capital City Lodge #9 said that under Ohio state law and Columbus Police Department policy, a public records request must be made to access body camera footage.
In a YouTube post, Badger confirmed his firing, saying he was “100% positive” that he would get his job back in nine to 12 months. He also asked viewers for donations and said his channel had been monetized.
“I’m gonna ask that you help me pay my bills,” he said in the video.
Badger said he was fired for criticizing city leaders and will “very strongly” pursue a federal civil rights lawsuit against Columbus when he reclaims his job.
While FOP President Brian Steel acknowledged Badger's violation of department policies, he believes his termination is “excessive punishment.” He said the union would support Badger’s appeal through the grievance process and arbitration.
“FOP Lodge #9 remains committed to ensuring fair and just treatment of its members and will vigorously defend Officer Badger’s rights through the arbitration process,” Steel said in the statement.
Badger admitted to internal affairs investigators last fall that, as previously reported in The Columbus Dispatch, he bypassed the formal records request process on multiple occasions.
In the Tuesday video, he also admitted to violating division policy. However, he said officers do not typically get fired for this.
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