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Virginia city alters body camera policy in wake of shooting

Virginia Beach police work the scene of a shooting the night before on Saturday, March 27, 2021 in Virginia Beach, Va. A pair of overnight fatal shootings along the beachfront in Virginia Beach wounded several people in a scene described by authorities on Saturday as very chaotic. (AP Photo/John C. Clark) (John C. Clark, John C. Clark www.clarkmedia1980.com)

VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. – Police in the city of Virginia Beach will require officers’ body cameras to be activated immediately when a police officer marks “en route” to a call.

WAVY-TV reported this week that the previous policy required officers to activate cameras as soon as they arrived at the scene and as soon as it was “safe and practical to do so.”

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The change falls in the wake of the fatal police shooting of Donovon Lynch in late March.

Lynch was a cousin of Virginia Beach native and Grammy-winning musician Pharrell Williams. Police said the body camera worn by the officer who shot Lynch wasn’t activated for unknown reasons.