Gurnee police taking cautious approach with body cameras
Gurnee Police Chief Kevin Woodside said Wednesday he's proceeding cautiously with a plan to equip all patrol officers with body-worn cameras by year's end.
Woodside acknowledged a factor in his department's approach is a federal lawsuit filed last week by 10 Round Lake Park police officers who claim body cameras recorded them during private times. The suit, which seeks at least $15 million, contends the cameras violated their civil rights and privacy.
"I think one of the advantages of taking that patient approach is you can learn from the others' experience," Woodside said. "It's more than just purchasing the equipment and purchasing the capacity to store all that video. There are man-hours that are involved in doing the redacting and the editing of video and preparing it for court and the other purposes it would be used for."
Round Lake Park police officials said they halted use of that department's body-worn cameras after the recording problems became known in May. The officers were outfitted with the devices in August 2015 in an effort by the village to increase transparency between the department and residents.
Round Lake Park Police Chief George Filenko said it's too soon to tell if the lawsuit might have a chilling effect on other police departments considering the body-worn cameras. Filenko said he still believes in the value of the cameras but declined further comment until he receives findings from an internal investigation into the devices in his department.
Earlier this week, Woodside updated the Gurnee village board on the body camera proposal that's part of a new five-year strategic plan.
Woodside said Gurnee would outfit all 40 patrol officers with the cameras.
Similar to what has been discussed in other towns, Gurnee's strategic plan says the use of body cameras by police officers would help maintain transparency with the public and protect the village, its employees and assets from frivolous lawsuits. The devices also would help in prosecutions by providing evidentiary video.
Woodside said his department is conducting research in an effort to find the best cameras on the market, and a proposal might be brought before the village board in September. He said the camera equipment could be purchased and the officers outfitted by the end of the year if village approval is granted.