The use of body cameras for law enforcement is recent topic that’s been discussed at all levels of government.

The Jefferson Police Department has been using the devices for over seven months.  Police Chief Dave Morlan says the department started with two cameras and have since then purchased three more.    Morlan notes that for years, the department used tape recorders, which only captured audio while officers were in the field.  But with the advent of body cameras, they can capture exactly what the officer is seeing.  The cameras are clipped to the front of an officer’s shirt with the recording unit placed inside the shirt pocket.

He points out that body cameras are an excellent tool to document an incident and how it happened.  It can also be synced with the in-car patrol cameras and are activated automatically anytime an officer turns on the vehicle’s lights or siren.  Morlan further describes why they use body cameras.

“Our officers wear them not to show that they’re doing anything wrong.  We like to think that we’re showing that we are doing what we’re suppose to be doing.  That’s why we’re proactive towards body cameras.”

Morlan adds that body camera footage can also be used in the courts as evidence.

“When the officers do their reports and send them up to the (Greene) County Attorney, a part of that report is the recordings from the in-car cameras and the body cameras.  They’re made available to the County Attorney and he sends them out to attorneys that are representing people.  So it’s part of our case file.”

Morlan says the Digital Ally body cameras are $800 each and the box to sync them to the in-car cameras is another $500.  Funds for the body cameras were from private donations, an estate and from the department’s operating budget.

Morlan comments that he would like to have a body camera for every officer on the force.