CHARLOTTE -- Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police are on track to equip all of their officers with body cameras by October. Beginning with the metro division, their new body cameras will roll out one division at a time.
On Tuesday, the Metro Division officers learned how to use the cameras, and they’ll start deploying the body cams Wednesday.
Major Steve Willis with CMPD said, “The cameras are pretty simple. It's push the button to turn it on, push to the button to turn it off.”
Charlotte resident Gwendolyn Johnson said, “I hope this will help them come out more because they'll have something to protect themselves with.”
The cameras go on the officers' shoulders and record what they see and hear during traffic stops, arrests or situations involving weapons.
“Just as an example of what happened in North Charleston, that officer made a traffic stop and activated an in-car camera solution. He then left that car and traveled some distance from it out of an earshot of the body mic as well as the in-car camera solution. With body cameras that camera would've gone with that officer,” Maj. Willis said.
The department's five-year, $7 million contract with a company called Taser pays for the cameras, storage and maintenance, and the docking system. As far as who can watch the recorded clips, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police say they'll leave that up to the state lawmakers and let them decide, only releasing the video only when it’s of public interest.
But even without public access, some residents are welcoming the new device.
Maddie Marshall of Charlotte said, “Trust is always an ongoing process. Trust is something that you build over time. We want to build this bond of trust in order for our officers to serve and protect.”
CMPD’s Providence Division will train with the body cameras Thursday. They'll start using the cameras on Friday. The department has ordered a total of 1,400 cameras.