The London Police Service has begun using body-worn cameras as of Monday. The rollout will be in three phases over 2025, starting with the Canine and Emergency Response units.
Deputy Chief Treena MacSween said not only will the cameras assist with investigations, but police believe they will help foster public trust.
“Body-worn cameras, when they were first looked at a few years ago, I believe the main objective was police accountability. And that is a part of it,” said MacSween.
“But it’s also about efficiencies that will be gained from the body-worn cameras. Our officers are able to get through their calls a lot quicker and get out and answer the next call for service.”
With cameras prevalent throughout mainstream culture on both smart phones and for security purposes, police interactions are often posted to social media. Western University Sociology Professor Laura Huey said these videos alone are not always accurate representations of what happened.
“Unfortunately, the solution to so many cameras is to have even more cameras,” she said.
“Because what happens in a public situation where somebody puts out misinformation using a little bit of video footage, with police officers out there with access to cameras recording as well, will hopefully mitigate some of that misinformation.”
And the whole picture is exactly what London Police Sgt. Chris Ross said officers like about the cameras.
“I would say relief is probably a good word. Instead of dealing with three seconds of video, we’re now showing the entire incident,” he said.
Cameras will be activated during calls for service, investigations and law enforcement activities. They will be deactivated when calls, investigations and enforcement are complete, or when recording sensitive situations such as a strip search, in hospitals, schools and during religious or cultural ceremonies.
Police body-worn camera footage can be shared with courts and other agencies, as required by law. Because of privacy legislation in Canada, the only way the public can access footage is through a Freedom of Information request.
For those who may not want to be recorded, police said in public, officers do not require consent. In private spaces however, consent is required unless a warrant or urgent circumstances apply.
According to LPS, the body-worn cameras will cost London taxpayers about $1.5 million in 2025, $1.9 million in 2026, and $700,000 in 2027.
More information about police body-warn cameras can be found on the LPS website.
