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A new initiative designed to make communities safer has just been rolled out in Macarthur. Police officers across the state have been issued with body-worn video cameras. The cameras, which were already in use internationally, are designed to prevent crime and assist in convicting crimes in court. Camden Police Area Command crime manager Jayne Doherty said the new cameras were expected to be a great success. “We’ve had them for a couple of weeks now and everyone is getting used to the cameras,” Detective Inspector Doherty said. All operations police will wear the cameras when performing their duties. Detective Inspector Doherty said it was up to the officers to decide when to start recording. “They won’t use them all the time, so if they’re just having a conversation with someone on the street that’s not about a crime, that’s not something that will be recorded,” she said. “But if they’re using their police powers, that’s an occasion to turn on the camera. “They’ll warn the person that they’re about to be recorded with the camera first. “The officers have done training to understand the legal issues surrounding the use of the cameras.” Detective Inspector Doherty said body cameras had been “proven across the world” to be beneficial to policing. She said the cameras provided more accountability for citizens and officers. “They’ve been found to reduce assaults on officers,” the detective inspector said. “And they encourage more guilty pleas as everything’s been caught on camera.” Detective Inspector Doherty said the cameras would also improve officer conduct. The cameras record high-definition, wide-angle vision with high-quality audio. They are worn in the middle of the chest and clearly visible to the public. All recordings are stored and managed in a restricted access environment on a secured video management system. More information can be found a police.nsw.gov.au.

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