Weare Police to Wear Cameras
Officers of the beleaguered Weare, N.H. Police Department are about to get a new piece of equipment. All 12 officers in the department will start wearing cameras as part of their uniform.
The Concord Monitor reports:
[Weare Police Chief John] Velleca said earlier this year that he planned to transition to the cameras as part of an effort to rebuild the department’s reputation after years of lawsuits and an officer-involved shooting last summer that left an unarmed drug dealer dead.
“I think we’ve had a problem with officer deportment here,’’ Velleca said yesterday. “This is a way we can hopefully correct that.’’
“We want to be accountable,’’ he added.
The department and State’s Attorney General are investigating an officer-involved shooting from August 2013, according to the Monitor.
Velleca told CBS Boston the $300 cameras, made by Taser, will protect both the public and police officers.
Wearable cameras for police officers have gained support and raised privacy concerns across the country. The devices were notably part of Judge Shira Scheindlin’s required remedies when she smacked down new York City’s “Stop and Frisk’’ policy. She was later removed from the case by a federal appeals court panel, to the consternation of legal experts. The Second Circuit Court of Appeals ultimately agreed with Scheindlin’s decision.
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