Arizona
Arizona Police Body Camera Laws (2026): Mandate & Access
Arizona now has a statewide body camera law. By July 1, 2026, A.R.S. 38-1171 to 38-1172 require every local law enforcement agency and the Department of Public Safety to equip patrol officers with body cameras, and the same law sets activation rules, retention duties, and public release deadlines.
Information last verified on 2026-07-08. This article has not yet been reviewed by a licensed lawyer.
Scope: This page covers Arizona state law on police body-worn cameras: the statewide mandate, when officers must record, how long footage is kept, and how the public can request a copy. It does not cover a civilian's right to record police; for that separate question, see Is It Illegal to Record Someone in Public?
Does Arizona require police to wear body cameras?
Yes, and this is a recent change. Arizona enacted its statewide body-worn camera mandate through Senate Bill 1640 in 2023, codified at A.R.S. 38-1171 (definitions) and 38-1172 (peace officer camera and incident-recording requirements). The original compliance deadline was July 1, 2025; the Legislature pushed it back to July 1, 2026 through Senate Bill 1710. Under that deadline, every local law enforcement agency in Arizona, along with the Department of Public Safety, must provide a body-worn camera for each peace officer who has contact with the public. That makes Arizona one of a smaller group of states with an actual statewide equipment mandate rather than a purely local, agency-by-agency decision. See our Police Bodycam Laws by State hub for how that compares to states that leave the choice entirely to local agencies.
When must an Arizona officer turn the camera on?
An officer must wear and activate a body-worn camera, or activate an equipped dash camera, when responding to a call for service or during any contact with the public that the officer initiates to enforce a law or investigate a possible violation. The statute also permits limited deactivation: an officer may turn a camera off to avoid recording personal information unrelated to the matter at hand, while working an unrelated assignment, during an extended break unrelated to the incident, or during an administrative or tactical discussion not connected to the original contact. Cameras are not required to record on a fully continuous basis, though a device that buffers up to two minutes of video before an officer activates it is not treated as "continuous" recording under the statute. Undercover operations and courtroom duty are also excluded from the activation requirement.
What happens if an officer does not activate the camera, or tampers with it?
A.R.S. 38-1172 attaches real consequences to an intentional failure to record. If a court, an administrative law judge, a hearing officer, or a final decision in an internal investigation finds that an officer intentionally failed to activate a body-worn or dash camera, or tampered with one outside a permitted exception, the officer's employer must impose discipline up to and including termination. Separately, Arizona's peace officer standards and training board (AZPOST) must suspend the officer's certification for at least one year, and must permanently revoke it where the failure or tampering was intended to conceal unlawful or inappropriate conduct or to obstruct justice in a case resulting in a civilian's death. An unexplained failure to record can also work against the officer procedurally, by creating a permissive inference of misconduct and a rebuttable presumption that the officer's own account of an unrecorded incident is inadmissible.
Can the public get a copy of Arizona bodycam footage, and what does it cost?
Generally yes, but the cost varies enormously by agency. Arizona's general public records statute, A.R.S. 39-121, presumes that records in the custody of a public officer, including video, are open to inspection unless a specific exemption applies, and bodycam footage is not categorically exempt the way it is in states like South Carolina or Texas. A.R.S. 38-1172 adds bodycam-specific disclosure timelines on top of that general presumption: unedited recordings tied to a misconduct complaint must be released within 21 days of the complaint, extendable up to 45 days if prosecutors provide written documentation that an active investigation justifies the delay. Where a recording depicts someone's death, the deceased person's family must be given access to the footage at least 72 hours before it is released to the public. Footage containing nudity, medical information, a minor's identity, or graphic injuries must generally be redacted unless the person whose privacy is at stake waives that protection.
Cost is where Arizona's framework draws the most criticism. A companion statute, A.R.S. 41-1734, lets an agency charge a fee for reviewing and redacting video before release, up to $46 per video-hour under 2023 legislation. Reporting by the Arizona Mirror and Phoenix New Times found that fee producing bills of hundreds or thousands of dollars at some departments for lengthy footage, while the Phoenix Police Department has instead charged a flat $4 for all footage tied to a single case. Because the fee is set locally within that statutory ceiling, the price of an identical request can differ sharply by agency.
How long is bodycam footage retained in Arizona?
A.R.S. 38-1172 does not set a single statewide day-count for retention. Instead, it requires every local law enforcement agency and the Department of Public Safety to establish and follow its own written retention schedule for body-worn and dash camera recordings, and that schedule must comply with the rules and directions adopted by the Arizona State Library, Archives and Public Records, the state office that governs government records retention generally. In practice that means retention length can differ from one Arizona department to the next, and a reader who needs a guaranteed retention window for a specific incident should ask that agency's records unit directly rather than assume a single number applies statewide.
Frequently asked questions
Disclaimer
This article provides general legal information about Arizona's body-worn camera and public-records law as verified on 2026-07-08. It does not constitute legal advice and does not create an attorney-client relationship. Readers seeking a specific recording, or advice about a specific incident, should consult a lawyer licensed in Arizona.
Related articles
- Police Bodycam Laws by State: the complete hub
- Is It Illegal to Record Someone in Public?
- Arizona Recording Laws
Last updated: 2026-07-08. Statutes cited reflect their in-force version as of 2026-07-08.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Arizona require police to wear body cameras?
Yes. Under A.R.S. 38-1172, every local law enforcement agency in Arizona and the Department of Public Safety must provide a body-worn camera for each peace officer who has contact with the public by July 1, 2026. This statewide deadline was originally July 1, 2025 and was extended by the Legislature.
Is police bodycam footage public record in Arizona?
Generally yes. Arizona's general public records law, A.R.S. 39-121, presumes government records, including video, are open to inspection unless a specific exemption applies. A.R.S. 38-1172 adds specific release deadlines for footage tied to a misconduct complaint, and certain content, such as nudity or a minor's identity, must be redacted.
How much does it cost to get police bodycam footage in Arizona?
It depends on the agency. A.R.S. 41-1734 lets agencies charge up to $46 per video-hour reviewed to cover redaction, and some Arizona departments charge that maximum, producing large bills for lengthy footage. Other agencies, such as the Phoenix Police Department, have charged a flat $4 per case instead.
How long does an Arizona agency have to release bodycam footage after a complaint?
Under A.R.S. 38-1172, an agency must release unedited footage connected to a misconduct complaint within 21 days of receiving the complaint. That deadline can be extended to 45 days if prosecutors provide written documentation that an active investigation justifies withholding it longer.
What happens if an Arizona police officer fails to turn on their body camera?
If a court, hearing officer, or internal investigation finds the failure was intentional, or that the officer tampered with the camera outside a permitted exception, the employer must impose discipline up to termination, and Arizona's AZPOST certifying board must suspend the officer's certification for at least a year, with permanent revocation if the incident involved a civilian death.
When must an Arizona officer turn their body camera on?
An officer must activate the camera when responding to a call for service or during any public contact initiated to enforce a law or investigate a possible violation. Officers may turn cameras off in limited situations, such as to avoid recording unrelated personal information or during an unrelated assignment or extended break.
How long does an Arizona agency keep bodycam footage?
There is no single statewide retention period. A.R.S. 38-1172 requires each local agency and the Department of Public Safety to set its own retention schedule, consistent with rules from the Arizona State Library, Archives and Public Records, so the exact retention window depends on which department holds the footage.
Does a deceased person's family get to see bodycam footage before the public does?
Yes. Under A.R.S. 38-1172, if bodycam footage depicts a person's death, the agency must give that person's family access to the recording at least 72 hours before releasing it publicly.
Sources and References
- S.B. 1640 (2023), Arizona 56th Legislature, 1st Regular Session, enacting A.R.S. §§ 38-1171 to 38-1172 (peace officer body-worn cameras)(azleg.gov).gov
- S.B. 1710 (2024), Arizona 56th Legislature, 2nd Regular Session, amending A.R.S. § 38-1172 (compliance deadline, release timelines, redaction rules)(azleg.gov).gov
- Arizona Ombudsman-Citizens' Aide, "Arizona Public Records Law" (A.R.S. § 39-121 overview)(azoca.gov).gov
- Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press, Open Government Guide: Arizona(rcfp.org)
- Arizona Mirror, "Fees for police body camera footage lead to 'pretty steep' charges thanks to new law" (Sept. 3, 2024)(azmirror.com)
- Phoenix New Times, "Requesting police body-cam footage in Arizona? It could cost thousands"(phoenixnewtimes.com)