2025/06/17 by Laurand, Andra, Teder, Triine
paper · doi:10.15158/aghm-6561
In 2019, the Estonian Police and Border Guard Board (PBGB) began using body cameras. The agency stated at the time that footage recorded with these devices helps convey the context of police incidents and may also be used as evidence. The PBGB also maintained that the use of body cameras was lawful, as a police officer may record any action permitted by law, such as conversations with individuals, vehicle inspections, the use of coercion, entry into private property or any other legally permitted act (PBGB, 2019). The aim of this paper is to examine whether – and if so, to what extent – the use of body cameras is permissible under current Estonian law. The primary focus is on the use of body cameras in law enforcement as regulated by Section 2(1) of the Law Enforcement Act of 2011 (LEA). The paper also analyses the legislative issues that need to be addressed to ensure compliance with requirements stemming from European Union (EU) law and the Constitution of the Republic of Estonia (1992, hereinafter “the Constitution”). The paper is based on presentations delivered at the “Administrative Procedure Act 20” (“HMS 20”) conference held on 26–27 May 2022, the 38th Estonian Lawyers’ Days held on 26–27 September 2024 and the Estonian Academy of Security Sciences’ conference “Ten Years of the Law Enforcement Act: Pro Bono Publico”, held on 15 January 2025, as well as on Triine Teder’s 2024 bachelor research thesis on body camera footage as evidence in regulation and case law (Vormikaamera salvestis kui tõend: regulatsioon ja kohtupraktika), defended at the University of Tartu School of Law.