Residents living in Windsor-Essex may encounter OPP officers wearing body cams over the next year.
A year-long study by the OPP to evaluate body-worn cameras launched in Haldimand County Tuesday.
Media relations co-ordinator Derek Rogers says officers included in the pilot project could make their way into Windsor-Essex for traffic enforcement on provincial highways and through specialized units.
"The Emergency Response Team (ERT) has a variety of different duties like containment if you have a person who's barricaded. They're also used for evidence searches ... and search and rescue as well," he added. "If their duties take them into Essex County for any of those particular reasons, then certainly some of the officers who are equip with them could end up being present."
Rogers says officers will make sure residents are aware they're being recorded.
"Prior to leaving the cruiser they would activate the camera, approach the vehicle, and at the earliest opportunity they would advise the person behind the wheel that the interaction is being recorded," he says.
The body-worn camera will be turned off once the call or investigation is finished, according to Rogers.
He tells AM800 News the footage would then be uploaded to online servers when the officer returns to the detachment.
Rogers says the OPP supports the implementation of technology that helps collect better evidence, shows more accountability and enhances public and officer safety.
— with files from AM800's Kristylee Varley.