Milwaukee County Sheriff Wants To Launch Bodycam Program

MILWAUKEE, WI — Milwaukee County Sheriff Richard Schmidt is launching a bodycam program for his deputies, according to reports. The move is intended to bolster transparency in the sheriff's department.

Twenty deputies on foot patrol will be wearing bodycams until January as a part of the pilot program, which is designed to measure its efficiency and transparency. While the program will be highly useful, WDJT reported Schmidt as saying “We do need funding... this is not cheap stuff."

WDJT reported the total cost of the would-be bodycam program is unknown. The county board will need to approve the program's costs.

"The most money that we need is for storage of the video and so forth," Sheriff Schmidt said, WDJT reports. The company that we are doing this with is on a free-will basis so we are getting this for free right now."

The Targeted Enforcement Unit was trained on the bodycams in June. WDJT also reported Kenosha County officials are looking into their own pilot program for bodycams.

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