ARLINGTON, Va. — Starting Wednesday, Arlington County Police officers that are a part of the department's Operations Division will wear body-worn cameras, according to the police department.
The deployment of cameras includes officers assigned to Patrol, Special Operations, Community Outreach, K-9 and the Emergency Response Team (commonly referred to as SWAT), said Arlington County Police.
“The Arlington County Police Department welcomes the use of body-worn camera technology as an additional tool in our commitment to providing professional law enforcement services to the Arlington community,” said Acting Chief Andy Penn. “We recognize our community’s trust is earned each day with every interaction. I am confident these cameras will build upon our long-standing history of community policing by highlighting the professionalism of the agency while instilling greater public confidence as we continue to hold ourselves accountable to the highest professional standards.”
The funding for the body-worn cameras came in June from FY 2021 Capital Improvement Plan (CIP), according to Arlington County.
In July, the County Board approved the CIP and funding for the program. Specifically, the CIP provided $268,000 for body worn camera hardware; $244,000 for upgrades to four County courtrooms to support the technology; $536,000 for data storage, software, and maintenance; and $755,000 for replacing existing in-car camera systems to one compatible with body worn cameras, said Arlington County in its statement to WUSA9.
