Scott Williams, swilliams@wolfrivermedia.com
Contributed Photo The police body camera planned for Shawano County sheriff’s deputies clips to the front of a deputy’s uniform and has a small screen on the back, shown left, to review recorded video.
Shawano County sheriff’s deputies could be outfitted with body cameras by this summer, after the county received financial assistance from the Stockbridge-Munsee Indian Tribe to offset the cost.
Stockbridge-Munsee leaders have donated $20,000 to the county to pay the cost of acquiring body cameras that will be affixed to deputy uniforms and videotape their movements.
The Shawano County Sheriff’s Department joins a growing list of police agencies to adopt body cameras in response to fatal shootings and other incidents across the nation that raised protests about police conduct.
Sheriff Adam Bieber said that, although some deputies are hesitant about wearing the body cameras, he believes deputies eventually will see the benefits in improving their job skills and helping to win prosecutions in court.
“After a while, you want that video camera,” the sheriff said.
The Shawano County Public Safety Committee on Wednesday endorsed accepting the $20,000 grant from the Stockbridge-Munsee tribe and allocating another $30,000 to purchase equipment for storing the massive amount of video that the body cameras will capture.
Under state law, all video must be stored for about four months.
Supervisor Bert Huntington, committee chairman, said he hopes the body cameras will end up saving the county money, because the video will result in easier criminal convictions requiring officials to spend less time prosecuting cases.
“I think it’s a great idea,” Huntington said. “I don’t know why we didn’t think of it a long time ago.”
The full County Board still must approve the committee’s recommendations.
Bieber had advocated for body cameras, although funding was a question until the Stockbridge-Munsee tribe stepped forward.
Using revenue from its North Star Mohican Casino near Bowler, the tribe last month announced $185,000 in grants to numerous area government agencies to help with public improvements, equipment purchases and other needs.
Tribal President Shannon Holsey said she was happy to help the sheriff’s department obtain body cameras, saying she agrees that they are a useful tool in law enforcement and community relations.
Tribal police officers already are equipped with body cameras.
“It’s not only for the safety of the officers, but it creates transparency for the community,” Holsey said.
Bieber said the tribe’s $20,000 donation will provide for about 50 body cameras, which will be used to outfit all 28 of the department’s road deputies, as well as many staffers in the Shawano County Jail.
The sheriff said he hopes to have the cameras in place by this summer.