Hamilton Police will not be donning body-worn cameras anytime soon

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Published September 3, 2020 at 7:40 pm

Hamilton Police will not be donning body-worn cameras anytime soon.

Hamilton Police will not be donning body-worn cameras anytime soon.

The Hamilton Police Services Board (HPSB) at their meeting on Thursday (Sept 3), voted against moving forward with a pilot project that would require officers to don the cameras for a period of just over a year.

Early on in the meeting, board members heard a deputation from Jasmine Tandan who collected 1,700 names on a petition calling for Hamilton Police to start using the technology to increase accountability and improve transparency.

There was a lengthy debate on the issue, with most board members clearly daunted by the price tag associated with undertaking a project like this.

The pilot project, which would involve purchasing 100 cameras and maintaining them for a period of 14 months would cost around $250,000.

City councillor Chad Collins voiced his concern over the City’s deepening financial woes connected with the pandemic as one reason why he didn’t think now what the time to adopt the pilot.

Collins did, however, note that body-worn cameras are an inevitability.

Board member Fred Bennick was the lone supporter of the pilot project, suggesting that this was an opportunity for the board and Hamilton Police to show their commitment to transparency and a “true show of leadership.”

Ultimately, the board voted against adopting body-worn cameras for Hamilton’s police officers for now.

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