Westland, MI (October, 24 2018) - Westland Police Chief, Jeff Jedrusik, announced at a press conference at the Westland City Hall that the police department would begin to deploy body cams on every uniformed officer.
"The implementation of body cameras being deployed on all patrolman is yet another major investment that the City of Westland has made into Westland Police Department," says Chief Jedrusik.
"A program like this does not just benefit the Police Department but will benefit the Westland Community as a whole," said Jedrusik.
In attendance were elected officials, members of the business community, Administrators of the Wayne Westland Schools, and members of the Westland community.
The Westland Police Department is always looking for tools that not only advance technology, but further the department's ability to serve the community. Citing the implementation of vehicle dashboard cameras, Chief Jedrusik recalls the Westland Police Department being one of the first police departments to deploy the technology. While dashboard camera technology has significantly advanced, the Westland Police Department believes they can do better.
"Prior to our body worn camera program our officers were only able to capture video evidence that occurred directly in front of the patrol car," explained Jedrusik. "These videos often do not tell an entire story, or they may show view that is much different from what the investigating police officers saw."
This inadvertent omission proved to be problematic as judges, juries, and even the public were only able to see bits and pieces of the police officers' interactions. For this reason, the department had been thoroughly researching a new method in which the whole story could be captured.
"For the past two years the Westland Police Department has been researching a body worn camera program that fit best with our department's needs and capabilities," said Jedrusik. "I want to thank the Mayor and City Council for making the financial investment into our police department. The technological benefits and capabilities of this program are tremendous."
With the Axon body cameras, uniformed officers will be able to:
- Capture video evidence inside of homes, businesses, parks, and schools.
- Provide a high definition up close view as seen by the officer
- Assist the police department in creating training scenarios
- Provide video evidence to Prosecutors, Judges and Juries.
- Provide useful information to the media
- Reduce civil liability
Perhaps even more importantly, the department will be able to use the new body cam program to build and continue to maintain community trust, transparency and accountability. The Westland Police Department is aware that many citizens throughout the county have lost trust and/or confidence in their local law enforcement agencies.
"There have been some bad officers out there who have hurt the reputation of the hundreds of thousands of good, hard working and dedicated men and women of public safety who risk their lives every day to protect and serve their communities," said Jedrusik.
"The body camera program will allow the Westland Police Department to continue to maintain the trust of the community, the confidence in their agency and their ability to maintain complete transparency, while protecting our officers as well," stated Mayor Bill Wild.
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