Beaverton and Eugene Police Departments Receive Federal Grant Funds for Body Worn Cameras

PORTLAND, Ore. – Yesterday, Attorney General Loretta Lynch announced that the Justice Department has awarded grants totaling more than $23.2 million to 73 local and tribal agencies in 32 states to expand the use of body-worn cameras and explore their impact. The grants, awarded by the Department’s Office of Justice Programs (OJP), are part of President Obama’s proposal to purchase 50,000 body-worn cameras for law enforcement agencies within three years. 

“This vital pilot program is designed to assist local jurisdictions that are interested in exploring and expanding the use of body-worn cameras in order to enhance transparency, accountability and credibility,” said Attorney General Lynch “The impact of body-worn cameras touches on a range of outcomes that build upon efforts to mend the fabric of trust, respect and common purpose that all communities need to thrive.”  http://www.justice.gov/opa/speech/attorney-general-loretta-e-lynch-delivers-remarks-white-house-champions-change-event.

The grants, which require a 50/50 in-kind or cash match, can be used to purchase equipment and require that applicants establish a strong implementation plan and a robust training policy before purchasing cameras. The long term costs associated with storing this information will be the financial responsibility of each local agency.

“I am pleased that two police departments in Oregon are recipients of these federal funds,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Billy J. Williams.  "The use of body-worn cameras will assist our law enforcement partners and the communities they serve by providing greater transparency into the challenging work done every day."

BJA has launched a comprehensive online toolkit that consolidates research, promising practices, model policies and other tools that address issues surrounding body-worn cameras, including implementation requirements; image retention; concerns of policy makers, prosecutors, victim and privacy advocates; and community engagement and funding considerations. The toolkit is available at: https://www.bja.gov/bwc/.

OJP’s Bureau of Justice Statistics is collecting data on body-worn camera usage through surveys of law enforcement agencies.  It is also designing data collection forms for future surveys of prosecutors and public defenders to measure how body-worn camera footage is being used by the courts in criminal cases.

For additional information about the BWC Pilot Implementation Program, visit http://www.bja.gov/bwc/pdfs/BWCPIP-Award-Fact-Sheet.pdf.