The Denver Police Department wants to pay Taser International $6.1 million over five years for its first body camera program for officers.
The department would buy 800 cameras, and Taser will store the data, according to a contract that has gone through early City Council reviews but has not been introduced to the full council for approval. The cameras will be issued to patrol and traffic officers.
Chief Robert White has said the cameras will help clarify complaints against police officers, especially during accusations of excessive force. Cameras can help clear officers who are wrongly accused while protecting people who have legitimate complaints.
Sonny Jackson, a police department spokesman, said commanders did not want to discuss the contract until it was approved.
The department hopes to start issuing cameras by the fourth quarter of the year.
“They’re a hot commodity nationwide,” Jackson said. “We’ve got to work with the vendor.”
The cameras cost about $400 to $600 each. Storage of footage is the most expensive part of using body cameras.
While a pilot project last summer led to a plan to outfit officers with the cameras, the program received criticism from Independent Monitor Nick Mitchell.
Mitchell’s staff studied the pilot program and concluded that about one in every four use-of-force incidents involving District 6 officers was recorded during the six-month trial run.
Incidents were not recorded because officers failed to turn them on, technical malfunctions occurred or because cameras were not distributed to enough people, the monitor’s study found.
Mitchell offered nine recommendations to improve the body camera program, including more widespread use and better training.
White and other police department commanders disputed his numbers, saying their preliminary reports indicated a much higher percentage of use-of-force cases were captured on video.
They have not said whether they intend to adopt any of his recommendations.
Noelle Phillips: 303-954-1661, nphillips@denverpost.com or twitter.com/Noelle_Phillips
