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Joliet police department orders 50 more Tasers

JOLIET, Ill. (AP) - The Joliet Police Department is ordering 50 new Tasers with the goal of one day arming all 270 police officers with the device.

The Herald-News (bit.ly/1NSJ1oz) reports the Joliet City Council approved the purchase Tuesday. The total cost is $110,000.

Joliet Police Chief Brian Benton says each Taser comes with a video camera. He said the camera has helped defend officers against misconduct complaints.

The department has 169 Tasers, 31 are not in use because the cameras aren't working.

Joliet police officers have been armed with the device since 2010.

Public demand for video use in police incidents has increased since the 2014 shooting death of unarmed black teenager Michael Brown in Ferguson, Mo.

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