The RCMP to Begin Body Camera Rollout for Frontline Officers

The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) is set to provide an update on its plan to equip frontline officers with body cameras later this month. The national rollout plan and data storage system will be discussed during the announcement on Thursday afternoon.

The deployment of body cameras will begin gradually in mid-to-late November, with the objective of having 90% of frontline members wearing the cameras within the next year and a half. This initiative is the largest and most ambitious rollout of its kind due to the size and unique mandate of the RCMP, which provides federal, provincial, regional, and local police services across the country.

While other police agencies in Canada already utilize body cameras, the RCMP’s national profile will likely attract additional scrutiny regarding the use of the cameras and access to the footage. According to RCMP policy, the cameras must be activated and recording during service calls, including ongoing crimes, investigations, mental health calls, and protest responses. However, they will not be used during “intimate searches.”

The RCMP has stated that it may proactively release footage from body-worn cameras when it is deemed to be in the public interest. Members of the public can also request access to footage captured of them under the Privacy Act.

The decision to equip between 10,000 and 15,000 officers with body-worn cameras was initially announced in 2020 amidst global protests against police brutality following the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis. Delays in awarding contracts and conducting pilot testing pushed back the original rollout timeline. Detachments in Nova Scotia, Nunavut, and Alberta have already implemented the cameras for field testing.

The federal government has allocated nearly $240 million over six years to establish the program and an additional $50 million annually for operational funding. The implementation of body cameras is a significant step towards increasing transparency and accountability within the RCMP.