The Calgary Police Service announced the expansion of the use of body worn cameras to all frontline members Thursday.
Police have been testing a “phased rollout” to District 1 and Traffic since August.
Police said rollout to other areas of the service will be paused for two months to make sure best practices are adopted, but anticipate all uniformed frontline members will wear body worn cameras by the end of 2016 or the start of 2017.
Police said 91 per cent of polled Calgarians said they were supportive of the use of the cameras; 88 per cent said it will enhance transparency; 95 per cent said it will increase officer accountability.
READ MORE: RCMP back to the drawing board on body-worn cameras
The policy dictates cameras are activated when officers respond to a call or attend an incident requiring investigation.
“Recognizing privacy issues, storage capacity and the fact that every situation does not merit the collection of video, the body worn cameras will not be recording an officer’s entire shift,” a release from police said.
WATCH: Calgary Police video showing the overview of the body worn camera roll out.
Police are planning public education and an awareness campaign to make sure residents are aware that when they’re interacting with an officer, it’s possible it’s being captured on a body worn camera.
For more information on the CPS policy on body worn cameras, including the Privacy Impact Assessment, click here: https://www.calgary.ca/cps/Pages/Body-Worn-Camera.aspx
READ MORE: Toronto police board chair to urge expanded use of body-worn cameras
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