Linn County Board authorizes County Attorney access to archived surveillance clips

The Linn County Board of Supervisors voted unanimously Monday to authorize the chair to sign a video surveillance access request form allowing the County Attorney's Office to view recorded clips from the county's FLIR control-center player for use in investigations.

County Attorney's Office representative Monica told the board the office was not seeking access to live surveillance feeds but needed the ability to play stored clips for investigations. "The county attorney's office is not requesting access to the live feed, but when investigations happen that involve clips, captured on that surveillance program, it's imperative that we can view the clips that are captured," Monica said.

Monica said a recent investigation prompted the request after the sheriff's office provided video clips that staff could not open because the media player was blocked by IT. She said IT told her supervisor approval was required for the County Attorney's Office to get access.

Board members asked no substantive questions before approving the motion. Board Chair moved to authorize the signature and a supervisor seconded; the vote was recorded with all voting aye.

The authorization covers playback of archived clips deemed part of county investigations and does not grant permission to access live video streams, as stated in Monica's request. The board did not attach additional conditions during Monday's action.

No public comment was offered on the item during the meeting.