Starting Monday, frontline RCMP officers at select detachments across the country will begin using body-worn cameras — but they won't be used for "strip searches" or "body cavity searches."Audio and video captured will be uploaded and maintained on a secure digital evidence management system, said RCMP in a press conference on Thursday. People involved in incidents with police will have access to the video files via freedom of information requests.“Over the next several months, around 1,000 officers per month will start using body-worn cameras and the digital evidence management system,” said RCMP.“By this time next year, 90% of frontline members will be using body-worn cameras and full deployment will be complete in the next 12-18 months.”Officers will wear body-worn cameras on their chest and people will know they are being recording when a red light flashes below the lens of the camera. Cameras will not be used for surveillance, 24-hour recordings, settings with a the expectation of privacy — washrooms, hospitals, treatment centres, "nor during strip searches or internal body cavity searches," said RCMP.Body-worn cameras create an independent and unbiased way to record interactions between the community and police, which helps increase trust between police and residents, said RCMP.“It will also help resolve public complaints more quickly, and improve evidence gathering,” said RCMP.“As part of ongoing efforts to be transparent and accountable to the communities we serve, the use of body-worn cameras and the digital evidence management system will be a national standard for all frontline general duty police officers across the country.”
Starting Monday, frontline RCMP officers at select detachments across the country will begin using body-worn cameras — but they won't be used for "strip searches" or "body cavity searches."Audio and video captured will be uploaded and maintained on a secure digital evidence management system, said RCMP in a press conference on Thursday. People involved in incidents with police will have access to the video files via freedom of information requests.“Over the next several months, around 1,000 officers per month will start using body-worn cameras and the digital evidence management system,” said RCMP.“By this time next year, 90% of frontline members will be using body-worn cameras and full deployment will be complete in the next 12-18 months.”Officers will wear body-worn cameras on their chest and people will know they are being recording when a red light flashes below the lens of the camera. Cameras will not be used for surveillance, 24-hour recordings, settings with a the expectation of privacy — washrooms, hospitals, treatment centres, "nor during strip searches or internal body cavity searches," said RCMP.Body-worn cameras create an independent and unbiased way to record interactions between the community and police, which helps increase trust between police and residents, said RCMP.“It will also help resolve public complaints more quickly, and improve evidence gathering,” said RCMP.“As part of ongoing efforts to be transparent and accountable to the communities we serve, the use of body-worn cameras and the digital evidence management system will be a national standard for all frontline general duty police officers across the country.”
