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March 08, 2008
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N.Y. departments to test PistolCam
By Domingo Ramirez Jr.
The Fort Worth Star-Telegram
Related: PistolCam: Footage to go NEW YORK — First there were the cameras on the dashboards of patrol cars. Then came cameras on Tasers. And now, cameras mounted on handguns could be the next tool for local police. Within 30 days as part of a testing program, officers at three New York law enforcement agencies will be equipped with handguns that have miniature cameras called PistolCams mounted on them to record the actions of officers as soon as they draw their weapons. The pager-size camera, which weighs less than six ounces, will capture up to an hour of video. After the video is about to reach its capacity, the camera will take still photographs. The video and photographs will be used to show what the officers are facing when they have to draw their weapons, officials said. "Frequently, officers are falsely accused in shootings," said Terry Gordon, the creator of PistolCam. The camera "will be a friend of the officer by showing what they face." Within the last few years, cameras on patrol cars' dashboards have become standard. Some officers have even tested cameras in badges. And there are cameras being developed to be used on an officer's lapel or belt. But PistolCam is one of the new and few cameras being tested on an officer's handgun. "I've never heard of it," said Frank Woodall, the director of curriculum at the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement Officer Standards and Education in Austin. "This is the first I've heard of such a camera. I'd need to find out more about it before I could comment about it." Richland Hills Police Chief Barbara Childress said officers will probably view using the camera with skepticism. "You have to do the research, how it benefits the officer, what will be the costs and safety issues," Childress said. Gordon, a former corrections officer, said PistolCam was developed to help defend officers, not indict them. The video is encrypted, so it cannot be altered or erased, Gordon said. The camera, which costs about $695, comes with a special holster, which is equipped with a magnetic strip that automatically activates the camera when the officer draws a weapon. For SWAT officers, the company also makes a version for rifles. The Newburgh Police Department, New York State Police and officers with the Orange County Sheriff's County SWAT team in New York will be testing the handguns with mounted cameras. Gordon said his company will be marketing the camera in Texas within a month. "Officers were apprehensive when they put cameras on the dashboards of their cars, but they have since come around," Gordon said. "That's what we hope happens with the PistolCam." [The camera] will be a friend of the officer by showing what they face. Copyright 2008 The Fort Worth Star-Telegram
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