BELLEFONTE, Pa. (WTAJ) — The Bellefonte Borough Council approved Monday night body cameras for their police officers.
Police across Central PA, especially in Centre County, continue to implement body cameras; however, one hurdle many departments face is the overall cost of the tech.
Municipalities that have a smaller tax base, including Bellefonte Borough, struggle to find room in their budget’s for body cameras.
This is where the Centre County District Attorney’s office stepped in: they’re helping to fund the tech which they say is a “big help in the courtroom.”
“The Bellefonte Police Chief wanted to have body cams for a while now,” Centre County District Attorney, Bernie Cantorna said. “He came to our office requesting help. We happened to have it. For what you’re getting, it’s a really good investment for law enforcement and the community at-large.”
Cantorna’s office will present a check for more than half of their cost: $15,000 out of a $27,000 total cost.
Currently, Bellefonte Police have to call Spring Township Police officers when encountering violent/rogue actors, which Cantorna says has its disadvantages.
“Having to wait for an offer from Spring Township means you may not catch everything on camera,” Cantorna said. “Adding more officers may escalate a situation, and you’re certainly tying-up a lot of police resources.”
Now that the body cameras are approved, five of the six local police forces in Centre County have body cameras.
“In a year, we’ve taken a great step,” Cantorna said. “In literally one year, we had two departments get body cams, and now we’ll have five-out-of-six with them beginning June 1. When the accused and defendant looks and hears the information, it makes the cases resolve pretty quickly because there isn’t an argument about what did or didn’t happen.”
The only remaining agency is Penn State Police who last told WTAJ they were still researching to see if body cameras were needed.