Page 10 - Flathead Beacon // 4.29.15

10 | APRIL 29, 2015 NEWS FLATHEADBEACON.COM
County Sheriff, Kalispell
Just
Sayin’...
“We are all just here for a time — whether in this building or even on this Earth. But the values we hold dear will live on long after we have left this stage. Our responsibility, while we are here, is to breathe life into them; to imbue them with the strength of our convictions and the weight of our efforts.”
U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch after being sworn in on April 27.
“It’s not going to be long until body cameras will become the national standard and frankly it just makes sense.”
Flathead County Sheriff Chuck Curry on local law enforcement’s move to equip officers with body cameras.
“If the extreme minority in House votes again to kill this important measure, they will have to explain why they denied Montanans jobs.”
Gov. Steve Bullock on the ongoing efforts to pass an infrastructure bill in the last days of the Montana Legislature.
Police Look at Buying Body
Flathead County Sheriff Chuck Curry says his deputies could be wearing body cameras within six months
By JUSTIN FRANZ of the Beacon
Law enforcement officers across the Flathead Valley could soon be wearing video cameras that record every interac- tion they have with the public.
Flathead County Sheriff Chuck Curry said that outfitting deputies with body cameras is part of an ongoing national trend that helps law enforcement be more transparent with the public.
“It’s not going to be long until body cameras will become the national stan- dard and frankly it just makes sense,” Curry said.
Body-worn cameras have gained pub- lic support in recent months following a series of high-profile police shootings, including the death of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri last August. In Mon- tana, Rep. Bridget Smith, D-Wolf Point, introduced legislation during the 2015 legislative session that would have cre- ated a committee to study outfitting of- ficers across the state with body cameras but the bill was tabled in March.
Curry said that his department has been considering buying body cameras for the last few months and has even test- ed some models. He said the body cam- eras cost anywhere from $50 to $600, but the biggest expense is not the camera it- self but storing all of the footage. He said some camera makers offer cloud or server storage and that those costs must be tak- en into consideration before the depart-
A Flathead County Sheriff’s deputy displays one of the body cameras the department is looking at purchasing. Sheriff Chuck Curry says outfitting officers with video cameras is part of a national trend that will increase transparency. JUSTIN FRANZ | FLATHEAD BEACON
Cameras for Officers
ment purchases the cameras.
Some of the cameras are not much
larger than a pager and can clip on to the front of an officer’s shirt.
“It doesn’t take long to wear it and not even notice that it’s there,” Curry said.
Curry said there are numerous rea- sons why the body cameras would be ben- eficial to the department and the public. He said footage of any interaction could help clear up any claims made against of- ficers and could also be used as evidence in court cases. He said some officers al- ready wear cameras that they purchased themselves.
In the coming months, the sheriff’s office will continue to study the different types of cameras as well as other depart- ments’ policies about how long to store footage. Curry said he expects every dep- uty within the patrol division to have a
body camera within the next six months. Other law enforcement agencies in the Flathead are also considering pur- chasing cameras, including the Kalispell Police Department. Chief Roger Nas- set said his department has tried out a few different cameras but hasn’t yet de- termined if and when it will purchase a system. He said it could cost upwards of $15,000 to purchase all of the cameras and a video storage system. He is hopeful that the state will offer financial help to local departments. The sheriff’s office re- cently received an $11,000 grant from the Montana Department of Transportation for technology improvements and Curry said some of those funds would go toward
buying cameras.
“These cameras will help us be more
transparent with the public,” Curry said.
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