Gov, John Carney signed legislation requiring police officers and certain employees of the Department of Correction and the Department of Services for Children, Youth, and Their Families to wear and use a body camera.
The bill comes with $3.6 million in funding for the cameras.
Body cameras will be used to record interactions with members of the public following the regulations that the Council on Police Training will establish.
“Here in Delaware, we look out for each other because we care for our neighbors,” said Carney. “We can do great things if we work together, and this legislation shows that we are moving forward productively. Thank you to the members of the General Assembly and the Delaware Black Caucus, Attorney General Jennings, advocates, and law enforcement for your leadership on this important piece of legislation.”
This Act requires state agencies to implement the statewide body camera program through the procurement of cameras, development of a central data storage program, and necessary personnel. Governor Carney’s Fiscal Year 2022 budget includes $3.6 million to develop and deploy body cameras.
“This is a good day for accountability,” said Attorney General Kathy Jennings. “Everyone in this state — advocates, police, prosecutors, and the public — agrees that body cameras are good for transparency, good for trust, and good for justice. We worked hard for more than a year to design this program, and I am eternally grateful to the advocates who called for change, to the legislators who took up the cause, to the Governor who ensured the initiative was funded, and to the police leaders who worked to get this legislation across the finish line.”
