Will Cambridge police soon wear body cams?
With neighboring communities like Somerville and Boston adopting police body camera programs, Cambridge officials are making moves to follow suit after batting around the idea for over a year. Cambridge Police Commissioner Branville Bard and City Manager Louis DePasquale said they have been in preliminary talks with the unions and in the meantime the city is working on a request for proposal (RFP) to open bidding for companies to supply the cameras. Im a proponent, said Bard during the May 11 budget hearing. Bard helped initiate a body camera program for Philadelphia Housing Authority's Police Department when he was director of public safety. I dont think from inception to implementation is a long process; you have companies chomping at the bit to try to service Cambridge in that area, he added. But before any of that happens, the department has to work with the unions to come to an agreement and City Council has to review how such a program may affect the Surveillance Technology Ordinance. Bard said the unions  Cambridge Police Patrol Officers Association (CPPOA) and Cambridge Police Superior Officers Association (CPSOA)  viewed the move to be a substantial change to working conditions, but are willing to sit down with the city. In a follow-up interview June 4, CPPOA president Athanasi Darviris confirmed the union is in negotiations with the city. When asked whether the union supports cameras, Darviris said, Our ultimate goal is to make sure we protect our members and the city of Cambridge.  CPSOA president David Schofield said June 6 that his union has not had talks with the city around body cameras yet, but is having its first contract meeting next week with the city manager. "The CPSOA is committed to providing the citizens of Cambridge with the highest quality of policing possible while maintaining the safety of our members. We are open to discussions on anything that will accomplish these goals," he said. Both Bard and City Manager Louis DePasquale seemed certain a body camera pilot program will be coming to Cambridge. We will get this done with the support of the unions, said DePasquale at the May 11 budget hearing. In 2018 and after two years of discussion, Cambridge passed a comprehensive Surveillance Technology Ordinance that at the time was one of the most collaborative and progressive in the nation and the first of its kind on the East Coast.  The goal of the ordinance was to ensure city government doesnt engage in unwarranted surveillance, said then-Councilor Craig Kelley. More:More: ACLU calls Cambridges new surveillance ordinance a victory  While police cruiser dashboard cameras are exempt under the ordinance, body worn cameras are not. So councilors would need to approve a Surveillance Technology Impact Report before any purchasing or acquiring occurs, according to Lee Gianetti, director of communications for the city. If council approves the report and unions negotiate a contract, then the city manager moves forward with an allocation of funding. Since the police departments almost $69 million budget has already been approved for 2022, a separate allocation would need to be made, and the price tag is unclear at this point. The initial cost will be partly driven by the make and model of camera, and associate data storage requirements. The cost would also be affected by the options requested, if any, beyond the base models, said Gianetti. In an informal comment thread on the Chronicles Facebook page, almost all seemed in support of body cams. I dont see how any police force can be without body cams. Although the big cases lately have been of police misconduct, it can also vindicate police when they are doing their job, wrote resident Joyce Maguire Pavao. Yes, and the footage after an incident needs to be released immediately to a third party. No opportunity for weeks of unsubstantiated spin like we've seen in other cities, wrote Deb Nicholson. Yes please! It protects the police as much as the public and allows for better training in the future, wrote Michael Fournier. Some in support couldnt believe it took the city this long. I cant understand why so far behind other police forces  even in less progressive areas, wrote Sean Rogers.