Bradenton Police Now Equipped With Body Cameras: Report

BRADENTON, FL — The Bradenton Police Department went live with its new body-worn camera program after discussing the equipment at Tuesday’s Bradenton City Council meeting, WWSB reported.

The department tweeted about the new cameras, indicated it would increase transparency between the agency and citizens.

“Transparency. Trust. One City, One Team,” BPD tweeted Tuesday.

After a six-week pilot program to test various camera models in early 2020, the city council approved the body cameras for the department, which will cost $1.2 million over five years, in October, the Bradenton Herald reported. This price tag includes the cost of the equipment and the cost to oversee and maintain the footage captured by the cameras.

The Axon Body 3 camera used by the department activates automatically in certain scenarios, such as when an officer pulls their gun, reaches a certain speed in their police vehicle or turns on their siren, reports said.