Body Camera Compliance For Minneapolis Police Officers Hits 95 Percent
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) – In the wake of Minneapolis police implementing a stricter body camera policy last spring, the city is reporting that officer compliance reached 95 percent in the second quarter of this year.
Mayor Jacob Frey and Minneapolis Police Chief Medaria Arradondo released a statement Wednesday saying that the new policy is working to help officers be mindful of activating body cameras when responding to calls.
"The improved policy has effectively strengthened transparency and accountability – both of which are foundational to improving police-community relations in Minneapolis," Frey said in the statement.
As for the police chief, he thanked his officers for embracing the technology.
In April of 2018, the department's body camera policy was revamped after it was found that nearly half of Minneapolis officers were not consistently turning on the cameras when responding to calls.
The new policy disciplines officers who fail to comply, evening putting some in a mandatory program where they are under intense supervision and regular body camera usage reviews.
Per the updated procedure, officers are required to turn on body cameras when two blocks away from a call to which they are responding. If less than two blocks away from the call location, they are required to turn on body cameras immediately.
