Duluth Police Get New Body Cameras

DULUTH - Whether they are giving out a traffic ticket or interviewing suspects, "the best thing for them is to have the camera with them at all times," Duluth Police Department Sergeant Jayme Carlson said. Officers will wear one of the Axon body cameras to capture evidence in a way that dash cams or iPhones can’t. "The officers were a little apprehensive at first," said Carlson. The cameras are clipped on to their uniforms and whenever they're called to action or have to interact with community members, officers will tap the center button of the camera twice to record the incident."We trust that they'll do what they're supposed to do with the cameras,” said Carlson. "I don't have any problem with them turning them off to hide evidence or anything." With almost everything caught on camera these days, Duluth Police say the benefits of this new technology are twofold. It protects law enforcement and community members from false accusations, holds both parties accountable and, overall, saves time."We're going to look at reducing prosecutors' time in court, saving on time investigating complaints, saving on time investigating actual evidence," said Carlson. While officers are not required to wear the body cameras during their entire shift, the device can record up to nine and a half hours of footage, which is then automatically uploaded to evidence.com for examination."We don't review the video unless we need to for prosecution purposes," said Carlson. Duluth Police have 97 of the cameras and they cost about $300 each.