Dedicated to the citizens of Mason County, Washington since 1886

Shelton Police to buy new body, dash cameras

The Shelton Police Department will receive $249,580 to purchase new body-worn and dash cameras for officers because its current cameras are no longer in production.

The council gave Tuesday evening gave final approval to the purchase at its meeting. The council gave preliminary approval to the deal official at its Oct. 5 meeting.

At the Oct. 5 meeting, Shelton Police Chief Carole Beason said the district’s body-worn and dash cameras were purchased in 2017. That company was purchased by another company, and “the model we have is no longer a viable model,” she said.

“We cannot get replacement parts and we cannot fix them,” she said.

The police department uses the cameras “in order to enhance our officer safety when we’re out in the field, they also increase our transparency when we’re dealing with citizens out in the field,” Beason said.

In its report to the council, the department said staff obtained quotes from three providers and decided the Getac camera system is the best value for the city. The company also has a customer service agent in Olympia.

Beason said the purchase price includes the hardware, software, training, equipment and storage for five years.

The chief also pointed out the city can use American Recovery Act funds to pay for most of the purchase because it supports data retention.

 

Reader Comments(0)