Press forward on cameras

Good for the Wichita Police Department and the city of Wichita for pressing forward on equipping police officers with body cameras.

About 55 Patrol North officers are now using cameras, with another 50 or so in training on their use, The Eagle reported. Patrol East officers are next to be trained, with the goal of equipping all patrols and officers by the end of this year.

The department also released last week an eight-page policy on when and how the cameras are to be used. It tries to balance the need to record and preserve evidence with respect for privacy rights.

Sunflower Community Action – which has been involved, along with other groups and officials, in offering input on the policy – is concerned that the department won’t release video that shows wrongdoing by officers and exposes the city to potential lawsuits.

“The problem is that neither the racial profiling board nor the City Manager’s Review Board would have access to video footage of officer wrongdoing in criminal investigations,” said Sunflower spokesman Djuan Wash.

But Sunflower is supportive of the deployment of cameras and hopes they will lead to a decrease in excessive force and citizen complaints, as has happened in other cities.

The cameras are costly – about $2.2 million to deploy and use over a five-year period. But they are a valuable investment that will increase accountability, safety and public trust.

For the editorial board, Phillip Brownlee

This story was originally published October 22, 2015 at 7:08 PM with the headline "Press forward on cameras."