In this 2015 Pasadena Now video, Officer Joshua Jones explains how police body cameras work

Following years of research, controversy and discussion, the Pasadena City Council Monday unanimously approved the purchase of 320 body worn cameras for the Pasadena Police Department. The total cost of the cameras would be $1,532, 238, over five years, with each camera costing approximately $4,353 each.

“This changes the relationship between the citizenry and the police, and I am very happy that we are moving in this direction,” said Council Member John J. Kennedy.

A recent national survey by the Major Cities Chiefs Association and Major County Sheriffs’ Association revealed that nearly every large police department in the US, said it plans to move forward with body-worn cameras, with 95 percent either already committed to body cameras or have already implemented them.

The purchase was not without controversy however, as at least two companies objected to the process.

In a letter to Christine Kuo, project manager for the city’s Information Technology Department, Don Dutton, vice president and general manager of Seattle-based VIEVU, complained about the selection, saying that “a competitor of VIEVU (“Taser”) (was) awarded the BWC contract, despite the fact that City staff scored VIEVU’s BWC system as technically superior to Taser’s and VIEVU’s system is almost 15% less expensive than Taser’s product, representing a savings to the City of approximately $236,000.00.

Asked about the removal of the purchase from last week’s agenda, Interim City Manager Steve Mermell said, “Given the lateness of the request, I removed the item from the agenda. I wanted to be extra-confident that our process was a good one, and we plan to bring the item back to the agenda next Monday.”

Asked if he thought there were any irregularities in the process, Mermell said, “No, there were none.” Mermell said the agenda item was going back on the agenda “as is.”

“I reviewed the decision with the staff,” said Mermell, who explained, “This is what is called a ‘competitive selection’ process,” Mermell explained further. “When people think of government procurement, they think of a ‘low-bid process.’ This isn’t that. When we buy professional services, we consider a variety of criteria, and I am confident that this one was based on proper criteria. The Police Department staff and the DoIT staff did a very thorough analysis.

Mermell also told the council that the purchase of the Taser company’s cameras was “a far better value overall,” than other competitors’ products, citing as one factor the storage capacity of the Taser cameras.

It is estimated that the cameras will take about four months to be implemented on a daily basis. Mermell added that the City has developed a Draft Policy on the actual use of the cameras once they are purchased, but that the policy has as yet not been approved.