FY 2023 Body-Worn Camera Purchase and Storage Expansion

BWCs have become an increasingly important part of policing today. They are utilized on a daily shift basis and produce many benefits such as citizens’ perceptions of police transparency, officer training and safety, community relations, increased evidence quality, reduced agency liability, and assistance with public records requests. Currently, Sherborn Police Department (SPD) has been utilizing Axon BWC since October 2016. SPD is comprised of approximately 18 sworn officers to include a lieutenant, four sergeants and the chief of police, and it serves a semirural community with a population of 4,500. SPD was one of the first departments in the state to pilot using BWCs. As a department, we have been committed to the deployment of them and appreciate the value of the cameras, but we have outgrown our current BWC setup and functionality. SPD is looking for funding to expand and continue our BWC program by purchasing and implementing 20 new EOS BWCs, software, service, and subscription through utility. The purpose of the new BWC setup is to allow every officer within our department to have their own fully functioning body camera that can be utilized while responding to calls, and to allow officers to categorize camera footage without issue. Ensuring we have fully functioning cameras benefits not only our officers but also the community by supporting the department's commitment to professionalism, transparency, and
unbiased behavior. An updated body camera and software would decrease the amount of time officers are committed to the station categorizing body camera footage, completing discovery requests for court, or redactions for public record requests for inquiring parties. New cameras would also decrease the chances of a camera dying or not operating properly while on a call, which is a problem we are currently experiencing as a department. Project activities would include training officers on new BWC equipment and software and developing a measurement tool and way to assess the benefits of the new BWC bundle. Expected outcomes include a decrease of issues with BWC such as general functionality and charging, as well as an easier time with categorizing and redacting footage that will also benefit the public and external stakeholders
such as the courts.