CPS officials release plans to equip all frontline officers with body worn cameras

CPS unveils new body cameras Jordan Kanygin reports on the debut of new CPS-issued body cameras and the plans to equip all frontline officers with the devices.

The Calgary Police Service has announced its selection of a vendor for service-issued body cameras that, following a trial period, is expected to result in cameras on all frontline officers by mid-2019.

Following years of delays and problems with other suppliers, the CPS has selected Axon Public Safety Canada as its vendor for body worn cameras. CPS Superintendent Steve Barlow says Axon Public Safety Canada was selected following a hands-on testing phase that lasted three months and included submissions from two other suppliers. “Axon was the best suited for our needs.”

By the end of July, 100 cameras will be assigned to officers in District 1. Should the 90-day trial prove successful, an additional 150 cameras will be supplied to District 1 members in November of this year.

“We’ve signed an agreement with this vendor now (that) gives us another opportunity with more cameras out there to make sure that they’re going to meet the requirements we require,” said Barlow.

Officers will be required to record all interactions in the course of their duties and the recordings will be automatically uploaded to a cloud-based server.

“There is no way that an officer can delete the video or change the video,” said Staff Sergeant Travis Baker  “It’s sent into a database and, as a matter of fact, if they inadvertently record something, leave the camera running, and they would want the video deleted, they will have to contact the body armour unit.”

The Calgary Police Service plans to have approximately 1,100 cameras in use by the middle of 2019 with all uniformed frontline members, including canine, gang suppression and tactical, wearing the devices.

With files from CTV’s Jordan Kanygin