Madison Reporter

For years there has been debate over whether Madison Police officers should be equipped with body cameras – a move that is supported by the Madison Police Department. 

While approval has been delayed on a number of occasions, Madison Police will be holding a series of public meetings to address the cameras beginning on Thursday, Feb. 10.

According to madison.com, this series comes after the city council delayed the decision about adopting body cameras, despite being supported by Madison Police officials and the union. The Madison Police Department website says there was is a one-year pilot program that calls for 48 body cameras for officers in the north district of the city. While Madison Common Council approved $83,000 in the 2021 capital budget for this, the city council has yet to approve the program. Last month, the city council delayed the decision until April after the department made more information available to the community. The madison.com report says the council should be discussing this on April 19. 

The series of informational sessions will include case studies, hands-on activities and discussions, and police officers will be on-hand. It is set up to build a mutual understanding about the technology.

"The program is designed to build mutual understanding about the use of technology in law enforcement," the department said. "Body-worn cameras hold officers accountable for wrongdoings and could save a lot of time during investigations."

The cameras have been opposed by police reform activists, who say they would rather reduce funding for law enforcement, and that the cameras do not curb aggressive force used by officers. According to the report, Madison is one of only one-third of Wisconsin police department that have them. Barnes explained that the cameras are now set up to automatically turn when heart rate is elevated and other scenarios.

“It's important to note that body-worn cameras have evolved tremendously from cameras that automatically turn on when your blue lights turn on, automatically turn on when your gun is unholstered, and there are cameras now that are attached to a fit bit,” said Chief Shon Barnes.

The first event will take place in person at the UW-Madison Memorial Union at 800 Langdon St. from 6:30 to 9 p.m. Pre-registration is required and can be done at surveys.axon.com/s3/MPDST. 

There will be a second meeting on Feb. 17 from 6:30 to 9 p.m. on Zoom. The third meeting on Feb. 24 will be from 6:30 to 8 p.m. at the MPD Training Center located at 5702 Femrite Dr. A March 3 Zoom meeting is also scheduled but details are to be determined.