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West Valley City • The police department in Utah's second-largest city will soon be fully outfitted with body cameras.
The City Council on Tuesday night unanimously voted to authorize a $1 million contract to purchase 175 Taser Axon Flex body cameras.
During the council's discussion, many members praised police Chief Lee Russo and his department for their research and effort in finding what the city believes to be the best equipment.
Mayor Ron Bigelow commended the chief for taking his time and exercising "forward thinking."
"He [Russo] has done it in what I believe is the proper way, not just a jump-quick reaction to events that occur, but rather a thoughtful process of evaluation and testing in finding that right product that will best serve our needs," Bigelow said.
The main concern that Bigelow voiced was that the cameras be equipped with enough battery power and be turned on during the appropriate times, and that there is sufficient storage life of the content that is recorded by officers.
Russo and Councilman Paul Isaac said the department will store video content for 30 days, but Bigelow worries about how they will determine what content will be eliminated after that time period.
"If the council approves the resolution this evening, they will — the police department — will begin immediately to produce and write policies and procedures that will accompany this, along with training that's going to be necessary," Isaac said. He added that the department plans to update the council in the future on the program's progress.
Bigelow supported the purchase but wanted to ensure that cameras are, in fact, used and used properly.
"A dead battery is just as a good as no camera at all. A camera that is not turned on is no better than no camera at all," Bigelow said. "If we are going to spend this money and make these available to the protection of our officers and citizens [we need to ensure] that we have procedures in place to accommodate them," Bigelow said.
Councilman Steve Buhler assured that the city would be well served by the move.
"I'm confident in Chief Russo's presentation and the due diligence and research behind the selection of the product as well as the storage," Buhler said. "I'm also pleased that as a city we have the opportunity to lead out on this venture and set a standard for police departments in our state."