Police In Doylestown To Have Body-Worn Cameras Beginning July 27

Police in Doylestown Borough will be wearing body-worn cameras beginning July 27 as part of a 90-day pilot program.

The body-worn cameras will be deployed as part of a pilot program in Chalfont Borough, Doylestown Borough, New Britain Borough and Warminster Township.

Once the trial phase has been completed and evaluated, the collaboration of local departments will make adjustments if needed. Full deployment of the body-worn cameras is expected in October.

Full deployment includes the following municipalities: Boroughs of Chalfont, Doylestown, and New Britain, Townships of Lower Southampton, Northampton, Plumstead, Warminster, Warrington, and the Bucks County Sheriff’s Department.

In October 2015, Central Bucks Regional Police Department was awarded a grant from The Office of Justice Programs to form a collaboration of eight law enforcement agencies in Bucks County to implement the body-worn cameras.

The collaboration has met on a monthly basis to explore the suitability and feasibility of the body-worn cameras, according to information from the Central Bucks Regional Police Department. "A community survey was conducted in December 2015 returning positive feedback from the public regarding the deployment of BWCs," the announcement said.

Additionally, the collaboration of local police departments researched companies and equipment, best practices for storage of the data, and a comprehensive protocol and policy for the application of the cameras.

Body-worn camera policies for each department will be accessible through the Central Bucks Regional Police Department website.