Middlesex County Body-Worn Camera Expansion Project

Middlesex County is requesting funding through the US DOJ OJP BJA FY 2023 Body-worn Camera
Policy and Implementation Program to purchase 54 BWCs and associated equipment and storage for
the Middlesex County Office of Adult Corrections and Youth Services (MCDOC) and Middlesex
County Prosecutor’s Office (MCPO), expanding the county’s existing BWC program and allowing the
county to outfit all its law enforcement members with a BWC. The total cost of this project is
$108,000. Middlesex County is seeking a grant in the amount of $54,000 and will provide the
remaining $54,000.00 as its 50 percent match. Over the last 4 years, the county has been implementing
a BWC program, and most law enforcement officers are outfitted with a BWC. However, there are
currently 50 MCDOC members and 4 MCPO members who do not have a camera, training, storage, or
associated equipment. Therefore, the county is seeking funding to expand its program and outfit all
remaining members.
Interactions between police and inmates in the MCDOC and law enforcement officers and the public
for the MCPO are frequent and can result in use of force, complaints, and other officer-related
incidents. As mentioned, BWCs have already been implemented in both departments, and this
implementation has shown that the ability to capture, store, and retrieve video and audio footage that
can substantiate or disrepute complaints or officer reports is a useful law enforcement tool for post-hoc
criminal investigations and prosecutions. Outfitting the remaining MCDOC and MCPOC members
with BWCs would provide both departments with a valuable resource in enhancing both officer and
inmate/defendant safety and both departments’ ability to quickly and accurately adjudicate issues that
arise.
With funding from this program, Middlesex County will purchase BWCs to outfit the remaining
members of MCDOC and MCPO who currently do not have this technology. As of a law passed in
2021, every local law enforcement agency within the State of New Jersey is required to have BWCs.
The county has been working to meet this new legislation, implementing a full countywide program,
but it needs additional funding to complete this effort and outfit all members of these two departments.