Body Cameras Program, Town Hall Meetings Announced By Evanston Police

EVANSTON, IL — The Evanston Police Department announced details and asked the public for feedback Friday on two new programs: a series of public town hall meetings and the first day of its body-worn camera pilot program. Evanston police requested that residents to respond to a survey regarding its bodycam program and solicited questions for the first of the upcoming meetings.

Find full details below:

Town Hall Meeting Series

The Evanston Police Department will be hosting a Town Hall meeting on June 20, 2017 at 7:00 PM in the Parasol Room at the Lorraine Morton Civic Center, 2100 Ridge Avenue. The meeting will focus on Cultural Awareness and Community Policing. The meeting will be the first in a series of town hall style meetings hosted by the police department. Each meeting will focus on a specific variety of topics and issues shared by citizens during our previous town hall meeting facilitated by Dr. Gilo Kwesi Logan. Additionally, each meeting will cover police policies, procedures, and protocols as related to the topics of discussion. The objective of these meetings is to engage in a positive and productive conversation with the community while working to develop feasible solutions to community concerns.

Subsequent town hall meetings (dates not yet determined) will focus on the following topics:

• Drugs, Gangs and Unresolved Homicide Cases
• Social Media, Crime Prevention and Community Policing
• Rights, Responsibilities and Reasonability in Evanston

The Evanston Police Department would like to invite citizens to join us and engage in thoughtful discussion. The format of the meetings will consist of a facilitated panel discussion, followed by a question and answer session. To help us properly prepare, we are asking citizens to submit questions prior to the meeting. (Please submit questions directly related to the current town hall topic.)

Body Camera Pilot Program Begins

The City of Evanston Police Department in partnership with the Northwestern University Police Department will begin piloting a Body Worn Camera program for a limited number of officers. Nationwide, the use of body-worn cameras has become a best practice for police departments. Law enforcement agencies are using body-worn cameras in different ways, including improvements in evidence collection, strengthen officer performance and accountability, enhance transparency, better documentation of encounters between the police and the public and assist in the investigation of complaints. Studies have shown that the presence of a body-worn camera has a positive effect on the behavior of both officers and citizens during encounters. A body-worn camera is another of many tools available to an officer, but it should not be considered a be-all and end-all solution.

During the initial testing phase of the program, nine patrol officers and two supervisors will be outfitted with a body-worn camera. The initial testing phase will not only allow our personnel to test out the reliability and effectiveness of the equipment, but also address any procedural or technical issues that may arise. As part of the program, a draft Body-Worn Camera policy had to be initiated.

The State of Illinois has also enacted the Law Enforcement Officer-Worn Body Camera Act.

As part of the program implementation, the department is asking residents to participate in a short survey about body-worn camera implementation. The police department appreciates the residents for taking time to respond to the survey.

Frequently Asked Questions:

What does an officer record?

According to Illinois law, the camera must be turned on at all times when an officer is responding to a call for service or engaged in law enforcement activities.

Are officers required to tell people they are being recorded?

According to Illinois law, officers must only provide notice of recording only in circumstances where the individual has a reasonable expectation of privacy. The Evanston Police Department policy has stricter guidelines and requires officers to announce they are equipped with a body-worn camera at the start of every recording or as soon as reasonably possible after the recording is initiated.

What if someone does not want to be recorded?

According to Illinois law, a victim, witness or community member who wishes to report a crime can request the camera be turned off. However, an officer may continue to record if exigent circumstances exist or the officer has a reasonable articulable suspicion that the individual may be involved in a crime.

» via Evanston Police Department

Top photo: Evanston Police Officers Koste and Pogorzelski | Evanston PD