South Bend Common Council appeals ruling on police recordings to Indiana Supreme Court

SOUTH BEND, Ind -- The South Bend Common Council is appealing the May 2026 court ruling involving police recordings that allegedly contain racist comments by officers, extending a legal battle that has lasted more than a decade.

On May 28, St. Joseph Superior Court Judge Jamie Wood ruled that the recordings violated Indiana and federal wiretap laws.

The South Bend Common Council was given 30 days to file an appeal. The council has since filed, challenging the decision.

The council’s appeal filing to bring to case to the Indiana Supreme Court argues that the longstanding practice of recording calls to and from police departments was well-known to officers and the public, suggesting implied consent.

Council member Oliver Davis, a Democrat representing South Bend at large, said he hopes the council will receive a response by the end of 2026 or early 2027.

The legal dispute dates back to 2012, when the Common Council first subpoenaed the recordings. Davis said he did not expect the process to take more than a decade and had hoped the recordings would have been heard years ago.

“I don’t believe anything when it comes to public documents should be thrown away, whether that’s on a city level or the county level or state level or the federal level,” Davis said. “I just don’t think that public dollars have a right to be thrown away.”

Davis said the council has a responsibility to continue pursuing the recordings, despite the lengthy legal process.

“Chief’s gone, but those of us here have an obligation in our public duties to make sure that we fight for justice, and justice doesn’t come overnight,” Davis said. “It may take one or two or five years, 10 years or longer.”

If the court rules in favor of the council’s appeal, the recordings would be maintained by the city, and the public could seek access to them through the Indiana Access to Public Records Act.

The appeal is the latest development in a case that has raised questions about police accountability, public records and the release of recordings allegedly containing racist remarks by officers.