City Council Meeting Date: March 2, 2021
To: Mayor and City Council
City Administrator
From: Mark Elliott, Police Chief
Title
Consideration of Authorization of Police Body Worn Camera Program and Equipment Purchase.
Body
Action Requested:
No action is recommended at this meeting as presented at the worksession on process.
There is an opportunity for discussion and there is an alternative option to consider authorization at this meeting based on feedback of some members of the City Council raised last meeting to give direction to move forward initially versus gathering the total cost with the approvals coming after.
Summary Report:
The Northfield Police Department (NPD) does not currently have any Body Worn Cameras (BWC's). The department has had in-car squad video for many years. This video has been helpful in providing accountability to the community and in meeting the community's expectation of professional police service delivery. The NPD has requested funding for BWC's in the annual budget since 2017, but the request has been pushed back. The funding request has been in the CEP since 2018 and has been listed as a 2021 expected expense. This item was discussed during city council budget discussions in 2020 and approved as part of the 2021 budget.
BWC's have been available for over a decade, but have greatly increased in popularity following calls for police reform in 2015. Late in 2015, the President's Task Force on 21st Century Policing Report, which is highly regarded by police departments and communities as a best practices guide, recommends the use of BWC's in order to "improve policing practices and build community trust and legitimacy." The report covers the police use of BWC's in Pillar Three: Technology, and says:
"An increasing number of law enforcement agencies are adopting BWC programs as a means to improve evidence collection, to strengthen officer performance and accountability, and to enhance agency transparency. By document...
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