HATTIESBURG, Miss. (AP) - Body cameras for patrol and traffic officers in the Hattiesburg Police Department have been in use for about a month. And they are being hailed by some officers as an asset.
Patrol officers Nicholas Purvis and Tammy Hoadley told The Hattiesburg American (https://hatne.ws/2ikJTLL) that the body cams help them review evidence and find information they might have overlooked while taking an initial report.
The Hattiesburg City Council approved the purchase of the body and dash cameras in June, approving nearly $250,000 for the equipment - 79 body cams and 26 dash cams.
Police department spokesman Lt. Jon Traxler said the cameras are helpful in gathering and documenting evidence.
“A lot of times when they’re walking through, their eye may not catch everything, but we can go back and look at it later and see something they may have missed that will help us with prosecution on cases,” Traxler said.
The body cameras feature nine hours of continuous high-definition recording, 32 GB of storage, Wi-Fi docking bases, cables and a one-year warranty.
Received in November, the body cams have been in use for about a month. Chief Anthony Parker said in addition to learning to use the cameras, officers need to be familiar with the policies involved with using them.
“The policies have to be read to make sure they understand the usage, and what they’re expected to do with that equipment and what they can’t do with it,” he said.
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Information from: The Hattiesburg American, https://www.hattiesburgamerican.com
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