POLICE: Audit Finds Body Camera Failures in 22nd District

Audit Finds Widespread Body Camera Failures in Philadelphia’s 22nd District

Philadelphia police officers in the city’s 22nd District failed to record the vast majority of encounters that department policy required them to capture, according to a new audit that raises renewed concerns about accountability in one of the city’s busiest patrol areas.

The Citizens Police Oversight Commission found that officers in the North Philadelphia district recorded only 23 of 83 incidents that required body-worn camera footage — a compliance rate of just 28%. The audit reviewed a random sample of 125 incidents from April and June 2025 and found the 22nd District had the weakest performance among four Philadelphia districts examined in a broader review of body camera use.

The district covers parts of North Philadelphia, including neighborhoods such as Yorktown, Strawberry Mansion, and Brewerytown, and was singled out not only for low activation rates but for how sharply it trailed other districts. According to the audit, the 18th District recorded 62% of incidents requiring footage, the 15th recorded 73%, and the 24th District captured 88% of vehicle stops reviewed.

Auditors found the most common unrecorded incidents involved “investigate premises” calls — a category that includes domestic disturbances, minor incidents, and calls involving possible weapons. They also found that when multiple officers were present, it was common for not all officers at the scene to activate their cameras.

Still, the report noted that when officers in the 22nd District did turn their cameras on, they generally followed procedure. The audit found that 91% of reviewed recordings captured the full encounter, 88% were activated properly from standby mode, and 97% were correctly labeled.

The findings prompted recommendations for new district-wide training, repeated roll-call reminders about camera activation requirements, and renewed emphasis on recording while responding as backup officers.

Police spokesperson Sgt. Eric Gripp said the department takes failures to activate body-worn cameras seriously, calling any lapse inconsistent with department policy and expectations. At the same time, he noted that the 22nd District handles a large volume of activity and generates tens of thousands of recordings each year, though he said that workload does not excuse noncompliance.

The audit is the latest test of a technology long promoted as a safeguard for both officers and civilians. For oversight officials and defense attorneys alike, the concern is not simply whether cameras exist, but whether they are switched on when it matters most.

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POLICE: Audit Finds Widespread Body Camera Failures in Philadelphia’s 22nd District was originally published on rnbphilly.com