Big-City Police Forces To Expand Body Camera Use
BOSTON (CBSNewYork/AP) -- After months of small-scale testing, many of the nation's big-city police forces are planning to expand their use of body cameras by the summer.
But the number of officers with such gear will still be relatively small, an Associated Press review found.
The 2014 killing of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri, and other deaths at the hands of police around the U.S. have led to demands that officers be issued wearable cameras to deter misconduct and document shootings and other clashes.
But because of cost concerns, union resistance and other factors, the rollout has been slower than some cities envisioned.
Chicago has begun issuing the devices to over 2,000 officers, or less than 17 percent of its force. Philadelphia has begun equipping about 5 percent of its department and Houston nearly 6 percent.
New York plans to purchase 1,000 cameras by the summer, or enough to outfit less than 3 percent of its 34,000-plus officers.
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