Pendleton police are old hands with body cameras
By Terry Murry on Tuesday, October 10th, 2023 in Columbia Basin News More Top Stories
PENDLETON – The Pendleton Police Department has been using body cameras on its patrol officers since 2019. The Portland Police Bureau just started using them a month ago. PPD Lt. Tony Nelson says he can’t imagine life without the cameras.
“I can’t believe that some of these major cities haven’t had at least some sort of body cameras,” he said. “It is a major expense to take on, so I’m glad that they’re finally doing it. We actually love them. I couldn’t imagine going to work without them anymore.”
Nelson said footage from the body cameras has made a big difference in court.
“It’s great in court to show people what is being said, exactly what is happening,” he said. “It documents things just way better than just memory can do for you.”
Pendleton police have now worn body cameras enough to need the devices to be updated.
“It’s like a cell phone,” Nelson said. “These body cameras are on 12 hours a day, every single day. They start to wear out after a while. We’re seeing that now. We’re starting to have issues with them.”
He said updating the cameras will cost the department about $30,000 and that Chief Chuck Byram is studying whether to put in for the funding in the next fiscal year or the one after that.
