The legislation will give the public more access to body camera footage than ever before.

State police say more than 250 Indiana law enforcement agencies will take part in the crackdown that begins Friday and runs through March 27.

Legislation governing how police body camera videos are released to the public underwent significant changes in a Senate committee Wednesday. Now, all sides of the issue largely support the measure.

The bill, which passed the House last month, would give agencies discretion, but would also allow a person to seek a court order if they're able to prove releasing the footage would not cause harm and is in the public interest.

House Republicans rejected an amendment Monday that would have made it easier for the public to claim access to police body camera videos.

Gary Mayor Karen Freeman-Wilson says she hopes the three-year initiative will help residents in her struggling city to feel closer to the police force, "and not view them as kind of a separate entity that imposes on them."

The officer was taking a vandalism report about 5:30 a.m. Sunday when he heard shots fired and saw a red Ford Focus speeding away.

For all the talk of police militarization, no reliable statistics exist on the number of raids by SWAT or other heavily armed tactical teams. There are no federal or state tallies - except in Utah.

U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch said during a speech in Indianapolis on Monday that the justice department will rely on local police to help develop trust between minorities and the criminal justice system.