Editors Note: The original title for this story implied bodycams wouldn't be coming to the Town and Country area at all in 2025.
Members of the Alberta RCMP have started to wear body cameras, but as the rollout continues across Alberta, Athabasca, Barrhead and Westlock will have to wait their turns.
Twelve RCMP detachments currently wear body cameras, with another 11 slated to receive them in the coming year, but local detachments aren’t on the list for the first wave in 2025.
“Body-worn cameras provide a new opportunity for the Alberta RCMP to show our commitment to transparency and accountability,” said a Dec. 5 press release from the Alberta RCMP. “The video evidence collected through these devices will provide independent, unbiased, and objective interactions between civilians and officers, helping to increase trust between police and the communities we serve.”
As of Nov. 18, Claresholm, Drayton Valley, Evansberg, Fort MacLeod, Grande Prairie, Lloydminster, Nanton, Piikani First Nation, Pincher Creek, Sherwood Park, St. Paul, and Vulcan have body cameras for their police officers.
Bonnyville, Chestermere, Cold Lake, Elk Point, Enoch Cree Nation, Fort Saskatchewan, Gleichan, Lac La Biche, Mayerthorpe, Sylvan Lake and Whitecourt will recieve the first batch of cameras in 2025.
The cameras are supplied by Axon Public Safety Canada Inc., and there are limitations for where the devices will be used — the cameras won’t be used for surveillance, 24-hour recordings, during strip-searches or body-cavity searches, and in locations with a high expectation of privacy, including washrooms, hospitals, and treatment centres.
