DCP urges police officers to use all available bodycams

WHILE the police staunchly support its officers' use of bodycams on duty, there remains a significant shortfall in the number available for the increased exercises being done during the current state of emergency (SoE).

Deputy Commissioner of Police Junior Benjamin, speaking at a media briefing at the Police Administrative Building, Port of Spain, on January 24, revealed that approximately 940 body cameras were being used across the service. However, he described this as a “minute amount” compared to the more than 6,000 officers in the service.

“We encourage all our officers to use the bodycams that are available. However, it is important to note there is a limited number of bodycams thus far,” he said.

“It’s quite possible that officers might not have bodycams when they go out. Nevertheless, we are saying to our officers, once you have body cameras in use in your division or section, you are to use them in accordance with the departmental order."

Benjamin said training on the use of body cameras was ongoing in all divisions and reiterated the police’s commitment to transparency.

“We ensure that not just the bodycam speaks to integrity, but also thorough investigations into all shootings to ensure a level of integrity in what we do.”

While bodycams have been touted as an essential tool for increasing accountability, Benjamin could not confirm when more devices would be made available to the police.

In September, the TTPS awarded Diamond Systems and Supplies Ltd a $25 million contract to supply 3,000 body cameras. However, Benjamin did not provide an update on when the additional cameras would be received.

The shortage of body cameras has been a long-standing issue for the police, despite their importance in addressing public concerns about transparency and accountability in policing, particularly in instances of police-involved shootings and allegations of extortion against officers.