FAIRFAX, Va. – Some police officers in Fairfax County will soon have another set of eyes and ears on their uniform. On Friday, the police department announced a pilot program which will deploy 230 body-worn cameras into the field.
“I believe this pilot project will help all of us make the most informed decision moving forward as to whether or not body-worn cameras will be effective in our community,” Roessler said, adding that the department will use this program to study the operational costs and resource needs to operate and maintain the system.
The chief said the program will also allow them to examine whether or not the cameras reduce both the number of complaints filed against officers and the number of times officers use force in the field.
The announcement of the pilot program follows a recommendation from the Ad Hoc Police Practices Review Commission. The commission was convened to look into the police department’s policies and practices after the officer involved shooting death of Springfield resident John Geer. Geer was unarmed when he was shot and killed during a 2013 domestic dispute at his home.
Former Fairfax County police officer Adam Torres, who shot Geer, pleaded guilty to involuntary manslaughter and was sentenced to one year in jail.
Half of the patrol officers at the Reston, Mount Vernon and Mason district stations will be equipped with the cameras. Roessler said the three stations offer a unique opportunity as they look to understand the impact of body-worn cameras.
Researchers at American University will be examining the results of the pilot program and will share the results with the police department later this year.
“We are conducting this study with the highest of academic rigor to make sure we can have an informed decision this fall,” Roessler said.
Brad Bartholomew, a professor in the Department of Justice, Law & Criminology at AU, said they will focus on police services and the perception the community has when it comes to the police.
“We want to see if the introduction of body-worn cameras has any impacts on [the community’s] sense of police legitimacy,” Bartholomew said.
While Roessler said he plans to strictly enforce that officers in the program use the cameras, the policy they will be using does give them some instances in which the camera can stay off or be turned off. Those situations include non-violent domestic disturbances and some cases in which a person may be suffering from what the chief called a mental illness episode.
“If there becomes some signs of this is a criminal, obviously this is domestic violence, this is something else or there’s going to be a use of force, officers will once again start recording,” said Capt. Chantel Cochrane.
Officers will begin wearing the cameras on March 1, with all of the pilot program’s cameras on officers by March 13. The program will last at least 180 days, and Roessler hopes to begin hammering out a permanent program with the county board of supervisors by the fall.
“I fully support body-worn cameras as a standard issue piece of equipment for all patrol officers,” Roessler said.
