DEWEY BEACH — The fatal shooting of a 21-year-old Milford man by a Dewey Beach police officer following a foot chase last Saturday morning has brought the use of body cameras into focus.

House Bill 195, signed by Gov. John Carney on July 21, 2021, requires police officers and certain other employees in the Department of Correction and the Department of Services for Children to wear and use a body-worn camera to record interactions with the public while on duty or in a role that is likely to result in interactions with the public.

Whether Dewey Beach police officers utilize body cameras, however, is unclear.

Spokesmen for the Delaware Department of Justice and the Department of Safety and Homeland Security would not comment on that use, and referred the question to the municipal law enforcement agency.

Dewey police did not respond to an inquiry on whether their officers wear body cameras.

Delaware State Police, which is part of DSHS, and the DOJ’s Division of Civil Rights and Public Trust are investigating the shooting as a use of deadly force incident.

Dewey Beach Commissioner Gary Persinger said Monday he did not know the body camera status of the town’s police department.

“I do not know. I do not know the status for Dewey Beach,” said Mr. Persinger.

Emails were sent to the mayor of Dewey Beach, William “Bill” Stevens, as well as town commissioners Elizabeth Gibbings, David Jasinski and Paul Bauer asking for their knowledge of the body camera status, but no responses were received as of Wednesday.

Attempts to reach Dewey Beach Town Manager Bill Zolper and Town Solicitor Fred Townsend via phone for comment also were unsuccessful.

HB 195 requires “the Department of Safety and Homeland Security, the Office of Management and Budget, the Department of Technology and Information, the Department of Justice, and the Office of Defense Services to implement a statewide body-worn camera program through the procurement of cameras, development of a central data storage program, and provide adequate personnel to administer the program.”

Additionally, this act tasks the Council on Police Training, no later than Jan. 15, 2022, with the creation and promulgation of regulations setting forth standards for body-worn camera usage to ensure widespread and consistent usage in 2022.

A total of $3.6 million was included in Gov. Carney’s Fiscal Year 2022 budget for the development and deployment of body cameras.

When signing the legislation in July 2021, Gov. Carney said, in part, “Here in Delaware we look out for each other because we care for our neighbors.

“We can do great things if we work together, and this legislation shows that we are moving productively.”

According to DSHS spokesman Arshon Howard, “The law provides funding to procure body-worn cameras for law enforcement officers where necessary, to establish a central data storage program to house body-worn camera footage, and to provide adequate personnel to administer the program.”

As of May 2021, nearly half of the state’s 46 police agencies utilized body cameras.

Mr. Howard referenced a timeline for continued implementation of cameras, saying “(Vendor) Axon equipment purchases for state and municipal law enforcement agencies that currently do not have cameras are a priority and are expected to begin by summer 2022.

“Once the equipment is distributed, each police agency will be responsible for managing its own individual body-worn camera program in accordance with the final Council on Police Training regulations on body-worn cameras.”

Also, Mr. Howard said, DSHS Secretary Nathaniel McQueen Jr. asked “municipal police agencies that do not currently have body-worn cameras to provide the number of cameras requested and to identify one of the three selected vendors (Axon, Coban and WatchGuard) to service their agency.

“Agencies were asked to respond to DSHS with their need and preferred vendor by January 7, 2022. For any of the police agencies that do not select Axon, DSHS will explore the additional technology resources required to migrate their data over to the Axon Evidence.com platform for storage.”

A request to DSHS for a list of state law enforcement agencies with and without body cameras was unsuccessful at press time.

Mr. Howard said that, in February, DSP began the hiring process for digital evidence technicians who will be needed to review and manage the data. These positions have been posted to recruit applicants, he said. Once these positions are filled, the next step is to provide training for the technicians, Mr. Howard said.

Regarding the use of body cameras and implications of HB 195, American Civil Liberties Union of Delaware Executive Director Mike Brickner released a statement that read:

“The ACLU of Delaware supported the passage of House Bill 195, as body-worn cameras can be an important component of police accountability and transparency. However, they must be implemented properly to ensure effectiveness and build trust with the community.

“After passage of HB 195, the Delaware Council on Police Training took public comment on what policies should be in place to implement body-worn cameras statewide. The ACLU of Delaware advocated for requirements that cameras must be turned on whenever a police officer is responding to a call or initiating an investigative encounter between law enforcement and a member of the public.

“We also asked for policies that instituted penalties for officers who failed to turn their cameras on, as cameras would be less effective if law enforcement could turn them off with impunity.

“Lastly, we requested that footage that captured police use of force or was subject to a complaint from a member of the public be released to the public. Body-worn cameras only offer more transparency if that footage is actually available to the public, so release of that footage is integral to building community trust.”

On Monday, authorities identified the man fatally shot by the police officer as Rodney K. Robinson Jr. The incident occurred following a pursuit that started at The Starboard restaurant on Del. 1, according to DSP.

Since a news conference hosted by DSP last Saturday, no further details of the case had been released as of Wednesday. Citing the ongoing investigation, Dewey Beach police opted not to offer comment.

According to the investigation, officers were called to the scene for a report of a man with a gun at approximately 2:23 a.m. Authorities said Mr. Robinson fled before being shot once in the upper torso in an alley on Saulsbury Street. He again fled and was located unconscious behind a commercial building in the 2100 block of Coastal Highway, police said. A handgun was found at the scene, police said.

Officers performed lifesaving measures on Mr. Robinson before emergency medical services arrived, authorities said. Mr. Robinson was transported to Beebe Healthcare in Lewes where he was pronounced dead.

The officer, a 1 1/2-year member of the Dewey PD, was placed on standard administrative leave with pay and benefits, pending the outcome of the investigation.

Mr. Persinger had no further comment on the incident, saying only, “I only know what I have read in the press reports.”

On its Facebook page on Wednesday, a DSP post read:

“The Delaware State Police would like to thank the community for their patience as the active investigation involving the Dewey Beach Police Officer-Involved Shooting continues.

“We recognize numerous questions remain unanswered, and we assure you the Delaware State Police Homicide Unit is aggressively working through this investigative process. Although these criminal investigations take time, the Delaware State Police remains committed to providing updates and information as soon as it becomes available.

“We ask the community to follow the Delaware State Police on Facebook and Twitter for any news updates regarding this incident, and again we thank you for your patience.”