The judge in the South Bend Police Tapes case will take another 30 days to decide whether or not to release the recordings.
The recordings, made eight years ago, are widely believed to have officers uttering racial slurs and discussing illegal activity.
The family of Eric Logan, who was shot and killed by a white police officer last year, had sought to join the case. They claimed the tapes could indicate a pattern of racism within the department. A judge dismissed their request to join the case but the family will be allowed to respond to the South Bend Police Department’s motion that the tapes not be released.
The department says the tapes are in violation of the federal wiretap act because they had not consented to being recorded. The Common Council is pushing for the release of the tapes.