State legislation requires law enforcement officers to wear body cameras by July 2023. The Colorado State Patrol is on track to meet that deadline months ahead of schedule.
In 2020, House Bill 20-217 “Enhance Law Enforcement Integrity” was passed that requires police agencies in Colorado to fully implement body-worn cameras by July 2023.
The legislation earmarked $8 million for the effort. Master Trooper Gary Cutler said he expects State Patrol officers to be outfitted with body cameras by next March.
“It’s been a very big endeavor for us,” Master Trooper Gary Cutler said. Before, “it was fiscally prohibitive to us … It (the new funding) helped us push it a little bit further along.”
The funding is evenly split to both purchase equipment and pay for support services and data storage.
“We already have cameras in cars, but they don't talk to each other because they're different systems,” Cutler said.
In addition to providing enhanced communication capabilities over existing dash-mounted cameras, body-worn gear also provides superior audio during police interactions.
“We were prohibited a little bit with our audio that we had with the car cameras because they didn't have a very good range,” Cutler added.
All officers are requried to go through training on the laws dictating how cameras are to be used, according to Cutler. House Bill 20-217 requires peace officers to wear and activate body cameras when responding to calls for service, while investigating potential law violations or during police iniated public interactions.
The law provides exceptions to permit officers to turn off body cameras to avoid recording non-case related personal data, when working on unrelated assignments, during tactical or administrative discussions or while working undercover.
Upon completion of training officers are issued cameras they are required to wear from that point on, Cutler said.
Putting the new equipment into action will involve a period of adjustment for officers not previously tasked with operating body-worn cameras, according to Cutler.
“It is a safety net for everybody,” he said. “With troopers, you keep them on the straight and narrow as well … It’s just another piece of evidence for us,” Cutler said. “It's going to help our agency and troopers … having the cameras with us.”
