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WASHINGTON — <\/span>U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement said Saturday it expects every officer and agent in the field to be equipped with a body camera by the end of August, a rapid expansion that could provide an unprecedented visual record of the federal government\u2019s immigration enforcement operations.<\/p>\n But whether the public will get to see that footage remains largely up to ICE.<\/p>\n The agency defended its body-worn camera policy amid questions about provisions allowing ICE leadership to withhold or indefinitely delay footage after serious injuries or deaths in custody. Acting Director David J. Venturella said the restrictions are intended to protect investigations and privacy and are consistent with federal law and policies at other federal law enforcement agencies.<\/p>\n Venturella\u2019s statement<\/a> came in response to an Associated Press report<\/a> on ICE policy, including a provision calling for the expedited release of footage after a serious injury or death in custody when doing so is determined to be in the \u201cbest interests of the agency.\u201d<\/p>\n Venturella said the AP \u201cmischaracterized\u201d the policy by conflating that provision with ICE\u2019s broader authority to release body-camera footage. He said the policy clarifies that footage should not be released when doing so could compromise investigations or privacy.<\/p>\n The AP report did not say the provision governs every release of body-camera footage. It focused on ICE\u2019s policy for releasing footage after some of the most consequential encounters with the public: those involving serious injury or death.<\/p>\n The AP sought comment from ICE before its initial story on Friday. The agency provided partial responses, without addressing the provision that footage would be released when in its \u201cbest interests.\u201d<\/p>\n ICE has been under heightened scrutiny since the fatal shooting in July of a 25-year-old motorist in Maine<\/a> by an ICE officer with a history of violent behavior. Days earlier, another ICE officer shot and killed a Houston homebuilder<\/a> driving to work. Neither shooting was recorded with body cameras. <\/p>\n Venturella said ICE was \u201ccommitted to transparency and accountability\u201d and was \u201con track to equip every officer and agent in the field with body-worn cameras by the end of August.\u201d <\/p>\n The AP quoted Christopher Schneider, a sociology professor at Brandon University in Canada, who said that selective releases are routine in some law enforcement agencies but usually not so clearly contemplated in policy. \u201cIn some ways, ICE is saying the quiet part out loud,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n The story noted that ICE\u2019s sister agency, Customs and Border Protection<\/a>, has not released footage of the fatal shooting of Alex Pretti<\/a> in Minneapolis in January. CBP Commissioner Rodney Scott told lawmakers that it was part of an investigation and would be made public \u201cwhen it\u2019s appropriate.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n