Great Barrington And Sheffield Awarded Funding For Police-Worn Body Cameras

The Baker-Polito Administration today awarded more than $4 million in state grant funds to 64 municipalities across the Commonwealth to provide departments with resources to start or expand Body-Worn Camera programs. The southern Berkshire towns of Great Barrington and Sheffield are among communities receiving funding for their police departments to be able to obtain the police body-worn cameras.

These grants are the first in a five-year, $20 million capital grant program that is expected to deploy 9,000 body-worn cameras across Massachusetts’ cities and towns.

More than $50,000 of the money is going to the southern Berkshire departments...

According to a media release from the Commonwealth's Executive Office of Public Safety And Security, Great Barrington has been awarded $19, 817. Sheffield has been awarded $30,843.

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Governor Baker says public safety will be improved...

We are glad to provide communities with these resources for body-worn camera programs, because they improve public safety, strengthen community-police relations, and enhance the values of transparency and accountability... This technology offers municipalities a valuable tool in support of municipal police in their efforts to ensure public safety and transparency in their communities.

Only a small percentage of MA police departments now wear cameras...

Currently, 10% of Massachusetts municipal departments operate a body-worn camera program. However, a poll conducted by the Massachusetts Chief of Police Association indicated that 75% of departments in both major cities and smaller communities are interested in starting a program.