DA: WCSO not providing required body cam footage
A dispute between First Judicial District Attorney General Steve Finney and Washington County Sheriff Keith Sexton over body camera evidence has led Finney to withhold all Washington County cases from the September 2025 grand jury until the matter is resolved.
The conflict arose after Finney’s office learned in early September that the Washington County Sheriff’s Office had not been routinely submitting body cam footage with case files sent for prosecution — instead providing the footage only when it was specifically and separately requested. Finney’s office maintains that its standard written request for “any audio, video, photographs, or other media” should encompass body cam recordings by default. On September 5, Criminal Court Judge Stacy Street signed an order directing WCSO to preserve all digital evidence and turn over any outstanding body cam footage.
Sheriff Sexton responded that any omissions were unintentional and expressed a willingness to cooperate, but Washington County Attorney Allyson Wilkinson filed a motion to have the order set aside, calling it vague and overly broad. A hearing was set for September 23.
Shipley Law Firm attorney Corey Shipley, a former Assistant U.S. Attorney with deep experience in both federal prosecution and criminal defense, provided legal analysis on the implications of the dispute. Shipley explained that body cam footage should be provided to prosecutors in every case where it exists, because it is the prosecutor’s responsibility — not law enforcement’s — to determine what constitutes relevant, exculpatory, or inculpatory evidence that must be disclosed to the defense under discovery rules.
Shipley noted that this obligation is rooted in the U.S. Supreme Court’s landmark 1963 Brady v. Maryland decision, which requires the state to turn over evidence material to a defendant’s guilt or punishment. When that standard is not met, the consequences can be significant: courts may grant new trials if undisclosed evidence could have affected the outcome, or instruct juries to weigh missing evidence in favor of the defendant.
Shipley emphasized that DA Finney’s response is not an overreaction, stating that the goal is to ensure the justice system functions properly and that every person charged with a criminal offense receives the due process protections guaranteed by the Constitution.
