My Clearwater
Winter l Spring 11
Officers to Wear Body Cameras
Body cameras have come to the Clearwater Police
Department.
Nearly 200 of the department’s personnel are
wearing the Axon Body 3 camera, which records interactions
with the public as they respond to calls and conduct
investigations.
“The Clearwater Police Department has always been on
the forefront of interaction and problem solving within
our community,” said Maj. David Dalton. “Body cameras,
by themselves, won’t provide instantaneous trust in
our community, nor should they. However, they are an
important element of ensuring our community of the work
we know our personnel do on a daily basis.”
Officers received training in the middle of December for the
body cameras, and they went live just before the end of the
year. Uniform patrol
officers and others who
work in the field and interact with the
public are equipped with the cameras.
The initial cost of the program for equipment alone is more
than $566,000. It will also require more than $68,000
for personnel to implement and oversee the program. The
expected annual cost of the program in following years
should be just over $400,000.
“The transparency of this program provides another
opportunity for the public to know about the realities,
tragedies and demands faced by police officers in today’s
society,” Dalton said. “It is also an opportunity for our
officers, supervisors and training staff to learn from these
circumstances and improve our service delivery on a
continual basis.”