City of Kirkland Police Department Body Worn Camera Program

The Kirkland Police Department (KPD) is the 10th largest city in Washington State, with an estimated population of 93,000 and a geographical service area of 10.79 square miles. The KPD recognizes the importance of trust from the community in order to provide law enforcement services. The KPD Body-Worn Camera (BWC) project is the result of the City’s 2020 Resolution 5434, identifying a more aggressive “…framework to ensure Kirkland remains a safe, inclusive, and welcoming community through specific actions to improve the safety and respect of black people and end structural racism by partnering with those most affected.”

The KPD has already taken significant steps in planning a comprehensive BWC project, including extensive research on existing BWC programs, policy requirements, and community involvement. The KPD comprehensive BWC program will be part of a holistic criminal justice system and developed in partnership with those we have sworn to serve and protect. Initial outreach to the community and our criminal justice partners has shown support for a KPD BWC program. Therefore, the KPD is seeking this grant for 110 cameras and a total of $220,000 which will support the implementation of the KPD’s new broad-scale BWC program. 

The KPD BWC project will utilize sound project management principles that have successfully implemented several major City projects and initiatives. The project will begin on January 1, 2022, and consists of four phases, Initiation Phase, Planning Phase, Execution Phase, and Monitoring/Closeout Phase. The Initiation and Planning Phases will focus on building a solid framework of policies and procedures and stakeholder engagement. The Execution Phase will begin October 1, 2022 and focus on BWC training and prelaunch technology. The BWCs will be deployed in phases from January 1, 2023, through May 31, 2023. The Monitoring/Closeout Phase will immediately follow the BWC deployment on June 2, 2023, and is designed to evaluate the project’s overall effectiveness, emphasizing post-deployment implemented tracking mechanisms. The project will close on December 31, 2023. Project objectives include:

Leveraging partnerships to develop strong policies and procedures that safeguard civil rights. 
A broad community engagement component to solicit public input on the use of BWCs and solicit ongoing community feedback. 
Deployment of BWCs to KPD officers.
An intensive program evaluation using identified tracking mechanisms.

A successful BWC program will better support our mission of service to our community with honor and integrity and demonstrate our department’s willingness to be transparent and accountable.