Highland police officers to ‘feel more safe’ with new video cameras
THE Highlands has become the latest region with police officers equipped with video cameras while on duty, which cops say will help them and the public “feel more safe”.
Today (June 17), Police Scotland rolled out body-worn cameras to around 400 officers across the region, with road policing officers and dog handlers to be equipped in the coming weeks.
Police say that the equipment can help to de-escalate incidents, improve public trust in policing and reduce complaints, as well as support officer and staff staff safety, and bring wider benefits to the criminal justice system.
The Highlands and Islands is the second division in Scotland to deploy the cameras following their introduction in Tayside last March.
Approved by the Home Office, more than 10,500 Motorola Solutions VB400 cameras will be issued to frontline officers.
Over the next 18 months, there will be a gradual increase in officers with body-worn video cameras across Scotland.
Every frontline uniformed police officer, including special constables, will be expected to wear a video camera on their uniform while on duty and to activate it when using police powers, whether a stop and search, an arrest of a suspect or executing a search warrant.
Police staff in custody suites will also use cameras when interacting with people in custody.
PC Dan Sutherland said: “It will make police feel more safe — particularly for me, I work alone quite often. It supports me. The fact that it lets people know that they are being recorded would in most cases, I hope, lower undesirable behaviour.”
The footage may be used as evidence, but it will not replace existing procedures and requirements when gathering all available information. It will remain a matter for the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS) to review and determine competence on a case-by-case basis.
Chief Superintendent Rob Shepherd said: “It will help us feel more safe. Body-worn video has been proven to reduce assaults on police. It provides greater transparency and accountability for the police officers too.
“There are complaints made against police every day in the UK, from minor things to more serious allegations. Body-worn video is just another way that allows us to capture that, and deal with it appropriately.”
Video footage will be uploaded to secure police systems and the evidence will be shared with the COPFS using the new Digital Evidence Sharing Capability (DESC) system.
The introduction of body-worn video is not intended to encourage the greater use of single police officer deployments or alter current deployment models for policing in Scotland, Police Scotland says.