Judge Stephen Benson has ordered that local law enforcement agencies provide body cam video to a journalist without blurring or otherwise concealing the identities of officers who appear.
Superior Court Judge Benson, in his final May 13 ruling, ordered that video taken during the Chico police killing of Michael Oxley be unredacted within 20 days and re-released to journalist and plaintiff Dave Waddell.
Benson left in place, however, other parts of his initial ruling that favored defendants DA Mike Ramsey, Sheriff Kory Honea and Chico PD.
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The defendants’ covert efforts to overturn Judge Benson’s ruling were ultimately constrained by legal requirements. Judge Benson’s decision was consistent with the California Public Records Act, although this compliance occurred only after Dave Waddell’s attorney filed an appeal of Benson’s initial ruling.
Dave Waddell, once again, has initiated a lawsuit at personal expense that has served as a catalyst in compelling law enforcement to comply with state laws and by pressuring the cabal of Ramsey, Honea, and Aldridge to cease their insular, protective, and non-transparent resistance to legally required public records disclosures.