Bartlesville police officers have begun wearing department-issued body cameras, thanks to funds allocated for the equipment by the Bartlesville City Council last month.
“Our agency recently purchased 55 of the body-worn cameras so every police officer on duty will be wearing one,” BPD Capt. Jay Hastings said. “The department also purchased 11 in-car camera systems, which were installed last week as well.”
He said officers in the field tested several camera systems before making the decision on which equipment to purchase.
Initially, BPD received a grant from the Oklahoma Municipal Assurance Group for the purchase of 10 cameras. However, the Bartlesville City Council approved additional funding to allow the department to order enough equipment to provide every officer with a camera.
“There is quite a process that goes into managing all the video evidence collected and providing it for court purposes as well as media requests,” Hastings said.
BPD administrative staff will be attending additional training next month on managing the collection of the video evidence recorded.
“I am excited about the implementation of the body-worn camera program,” Hastings said. “This program will go far to increase transparency and to provide another layer of safety for our citizens and officers. We will continue to work hard to identify ways to increase the customer service we provide to our community. The body-worn camera program is just one example of that. I want to thank everyone involved in making this program a reality.”