Recently, members of the Tumbler Ridge RCMP detachment attended training to learn the ins and outs, hows and whys and legalities of using body cams—also known as body-worn cameras—as the BC RCMP expanded the program to the Peace Region.
The program began in the province on November 24 and saw about 300 body cams roll out to approximately, 300 cameras will go to frontline police in Mission, Tofino, Ucluelet, Cranbrook, Kamloops and Prince George.
Once all the kinks were worked out, the program expanded into the Peace, with RCMP officers around the Northeast, including Tumbler Ridge, getting kitted out with the new cams.
Over the course of the next year, the RCMP expects to have about 3000 of the cameras in service.
“We anticipate many benefits from the use of body-worn cameras including improved public and officer safety, says Deputy Commissioner Dwayne McDonald, Commanding Officer of E Division of the RCMP. He believes the cameras will enhance transparency and accountability as well as provide a first person view of what police officers encounter daily.
This is part of the nation’s police force’s move to modernize. The cost of the cameras, as well as the Digital Evidence Management Services (DEMS) needed to keep track of all the footage will cost about $3000 per user. With an estimated 3000 RCMP officers across the province, that works out to about $9 million per year.
McDonald says he has personally heard from local, regional, Indigenous and provincial leaders, asking for the RCMP to address the overall need to enhance public trust and confidence in policing.
“This initiative will represent the largest, most ambitious roll-out of body worn cameras in the province,” says McDonald.
While the RCMP has used cameras for over a decade, says McDonald, “the evolution of the technology and supporting infrastructure has advanced in such a way that allows us to roll out the cameras to a much broader group—specifically—frontline officers who engage with thousands of people in British Columbia on a daily basis.”
According to the officers who attended the training, the cameras are activated when they begin to interact with a person during a call for service or other interaction with the public. The camera is mounted on the officer’s vest, with a flashing green light to show it’s working. The camera is powered on during the entire shift in a buffering mode, but must be activated by the officer in order to record audio and video. The camera automatically saves 30 seconds of video prior to activation by the officer. This will give a clear visual picture of what was happening leading up to the camera’s activation.
When possible and when safe to do so, they will inform the member of the public when the camera is on. If the member of public is not actively part of the call for service, they can choose to move so they are not being recorded, but it is always on during active calls.
At the end of that shift, the camera is placed onto a docking station back at the detachment. Footage is uploaded in its original format to a secure cloud-based server. The cameras are not for surveillance, nor are they on all the time. The cameras will not be used in areas where there is a high expectation of privacy.
Currently, in many high emotion interactions between the public and the RCMP, it will frequently descend into an us-vs-them situation. The new body cams will provide an unbiased account of incidents between the police and the public.
“Having a tool that makes our actions visible, and provides clear evidence, and may also result in a reduction of public complaints, is an initiative the BC RCMP wholeheartedly welcomes,” says McDonald. “Body worn cameras and the digital evidence management system is more than just a new tool in the RCMP’s modernization efforts. I am hopeful it is also viewed as a pivotal step toward addressing systemic racism. We anticipate body-worn cameras will deliver tangible benefits to the communities we serve and improve the safety of our officers and the public.”
Trent is the publisher of Tumbler RidgeLines.
