For years, police cruisers have been equipped with dashboard cameras. We have all seen what they can record. Television shows have profited from the footage as the public gazes at what officers see when they make a routine roadside stop to the behavior of the officers and the perpetrators of all types as they are approached, ticketed or even arrested. These cameras have saved lives, served as detectives, and, in some cases, even brought some humor to the viewer.
What about the many officers who are not equipped with cameras? Without a vehicle, how do you record what is happening and how do you keep your police force safe and their reputation clean?
Eighty of San Antonio’s finest bicycle officers are about to find out. They have never had any sort of recording device before now and have recently been training to efficiently use some new technology now available in body cameras.
“It is fairly lightweight, it’s not cumbersome to wear, where you notice there is something on you at all times,” says Officer Marcus Trujillo of the new camera.
The device itself is very small and barely noticeable if you don’t know what to look for. Most importantly it will increase accountability on both sides of the camera, leaving no question to the viewer as to where a dispute may begin or end.
“With everything that is going on in the country today, it’s important that we document interactions police have with citizens and vice-versa,” Police Chief McManus said.
One big difference between the body cameras and the dashboard cameras are that dashboard cameras are automatic and body cameras are not. The officer will have to remember to turn it on at the beginning of their shift or before every call or interaction with a citizen.
The cameras run about $1,500 each and the San Antonio Police Department plan for them to be a part of every officer’s uniform within the next couple of years.
(source: ksat)