WASHINGTON — Montgomery County police could be wearing body cameras by July.
On Monday, Police Chief Tom Manger briefed the county council on how a pilot program would work: with 100 cameras being worn by officers who volunteer to be part of the program. Manger has said he’ll be among those officers taking part in the program.
Manger told the council the department has been using in-car video cameras for years, but that the scope of the information those cameras gather is limited. Manger say the use of body cameras could provide a number of advantages to police.
“First and foremost, it’s a great way to document evidence and crime scenes to further enhance the quality of investigations.”
Manger says police and prosecutors find the videos provide “objective, accurate and reliable compelling evidence.”
Manger also sees use of body-worn cameras as a way to give the public the same “objective, accurate and reliable” documentation of how police conduct themselves. But Manger says the cameras could also become valuable training tools, allowing for review of police conduct in the field and Manger says training and review of camera footage could “ultimately increase officer safety.”
The Montgomery County Council gave preliminary approval of $622,379 for the pilot program. The council will wrap up its work on the county’s $5.1 billion dollar proposed budget next week.
WTOP’s Kate Ryan contributed to this report.
