SFPD Continues Rollout of Body Worn Cameras
On Thursday, September 1st, Ingleside Police Station hosted members of the media for a briefing on the ongoing rollout of body worn cameras (BWCs) to SFPD members. As of September 1st, 279 sworn members (approximately 14 percent) have been equipped with BWCs since the Department began issuing the devices in July.
"I've talked to several officers that already use it and it's been very effective as a crimefighting tool," Ingleside Captain Joseph McFadden told the press. "I think it's going to give us... some transparency for the public to see exactly what's going on with police work."
Ingleside is the second station to receive BWC training and issue the cameras to members. Bayview Police Station Officer Kyle Wren was among the first to receive a BWC and has worn it on patrol for about a month. "After a week on patrol using it all the time, I got very used to it," said Wren. "There's a lot of benefits. It can be very useful for investigations and it can be very useful dealing with people that are going to be really aggressive towards us. I just let them know, 'Hey, I'm recording you.'"
The Department plans to outfit all of its district station officers with body worn cameras by the end of the year. To learn more about the Department's BWC policy, please visit our body worn camera page.