REPORT TO COUNCIL AND THE STADIUM BOARD
SUBJECT
Title
Action on Agreements with Axon Enterprise, Inc. for the Purchase of Body Worn Cameras, Conducted Energy Weapons, and Evidence.com
Report
COUNCIL PILLAR
Enhance Community Engagement and Transparency
BACKGROUND
Body Worn Cameras for the Santa Clara Police Department (SCPD)
Body Worn Cameras (BWCs) are an invaluable tool for law enforcement organizations, providing benefits such as:
* Educational resource in the evaluation of training and policy thus increasing officer safety and situational awareness
* Investigative tool which allows officers to review and present evidence and creates indisputable and court-admissible evidence. Typical uses include documenting encounters in domestic violence cases, evidence collection at accident scenes, and documenting witness, suspect and/or victim interviews and arrests
* Strengthens police accountability by providing an accurate record of the sequence of events, improves agency transparency, and strengthens officer performance which is important when building community trust
* Reduces Department, City and police officer liability
* Reduces confrontational situations, manages citizen complaints, and reduces the time required to resolve such situations
* Collects information to assist with officer performance evaluations by helping to identify positive or negative patterns of behavior
In 2015, after a year of field testing, approving a vendor, establishing a usage policy and implementing training, SCPD implemented its BWC program initially deploying approximately 150 BWCs manufactured by VieVu. Santa Clara Police Department Policy 98.2 was issued in October 2015 to serve as a foundation for their use.
In 2017, the City terminated its contract with VieVu and entered into a new five-year agreement with Axon Enterprise, Inc. for the purchase of 169 BWCs through a cooperative agreement. This transition to Axon enabled SCPD to utilize one solution for cameras, video storage ...
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