London police body camera program set to officially kick off

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London police officers will be equipped with a new piece of long-awaited technology starting Monday.

The force’s $4.2-million program to outfit its 326 frontline officers – constables, sergeants and staff sergeants – with body cameras officially kicks off after months of preparation.

The program, included in the four-year, $672-million budget approved by city council last year, is part of Chief Thai Truong’s plan to modernize the force and change the way police deliver service to the community.

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As part of the rollout overseen by deputy Chief Treena MacSween, police will release a video on Monday educating the public on the program.

“We are proud to introduce the body-worn camera program, which will help build community trust, protect both our officers and the public, and ensure accurate documentation of police interactions,” MacSween says in the video shown to the city’s police board last week.

“This initiative is designed to support our officers and the community, with our goal of being leaders in public safety.”

The video touts the technology for its ability to provide an “unbiased and reliable” account of police activities, “fostering greater trust and understanding.”

“The cameras will capture every detail of every police interactions, helping ensure that all involved are treated fairly and with respect,” MacSween says.

It wasn’t immediately clear whether all frontline officers will be outfitted with body cameras beginning Monday or if police are taking a phased approach. Police declined an interview request until after the official announcement is made.

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Truong said the adoption of the cameras – already in use by police in St. Thomas and Strathroy-Caradoc – is part of the “culture of transformation.”

“So we’re excited about this coming out,” he told the board, the seven-member body responsible for overseeing policing in London.

The body cameras are just one piece of Truong’s modernization plan that also includes a digital evidence management system, cameras for cruisers and other supporting technologies to integrate with the body cameras.

Those combined technologies – provided by Axon, an Arizona-based company that develops technology and weapons for law enforcement – will streamline policing duties from collecting evidence and interviewing witnesses to providing disclosure to the Crown’s office, Truong has said.

Using the new Axon system, officers can upload photos and videos from their cellphones to a database and record audio statements from scenes, eliminating the need for people to visit the police station for a formal video interview. Citizens also can upload photos and videos for investigators to review using a link texted to them by police, saving officers from going door-to-door to collect it.

Early proponents of body cameras championed the devices mainly for their ability to improve police transparency, leading to some hesitancy within policing communities to embrace the technology. But attitudes around body cameras within law enforcement have shifted as forces found the technology simplified many policing procedures and expedited the process of resolving complaints against officers.

dcarruthers@postmedia.com

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