Frontline RCMP officers in seven British Columbia communities are set to join a national pilot project to introduce body-worn cameras to the force.

B.C. RCMP Staff Sgt. Kris Clark said officers working in Ucluelet, Ahousaht, Tofino, Mission, Prince George, Cranbrook and Kamloops will receive training before incorporating the cameras into day-to-day operations.

"This part of the training is to ensure that they know when the camera should be activated and when it should be deactivated," said Clark. "Also in line with that [are] certain privacy regulations."

Officers will wear the cameras on their chest in a visible place. Clark said the cameras will display a red light when they are recording.

He said the rollout is part of the RCMP's commitment to transparency, trust and accountability, and to resolving public complaints more quickly.

"What I mean by that is there is now a clear and impartial record of what's occurred on a particular day," he said. He added he also hopes police interactions are improved simply by the fact that both parties know they are being recorded.

RCMP policy on camera operation states members will turn on the camera before they arrive at a call for service, anytime they initiate contact with someone for an investigation — regardless of if the person is within camera view — to record statements and to record interactions with someone in custody. Officers can also turn the cameras on in other situations if they believe it will support their duties.

The policy also outlines when consent is needed to start recording, such as in a private home.

Cloy-e-iis Judith Sayers, Nuu-chah-nulth Tribal Council president, said her people have been calling for body-worn cameras since the 2020 police shooting of Tla-o-qui-aht First Nation member Chantel Moore at her New Brunswick home.

The 26-year-old was fatally shot by Edmundston Police Force Const. Jeremy Son during a wellness check after she allegedly advanced toward him with a steak knife.

"We will never really know the true story of what happened that fateful night as Chantel is unable to tell her story. Had the officer been wearing a body cam, we would know more about what happened," Sayers said.

She also pointed to the case of Julian Jones, a 28-year-old Tla-o-qui-aht man who was shot and killed by a Tofino RCMP officer during an altercation on the Opitsaht reserve on Meares Island in 2021.

"We know that body cams are one good solution and are very glad that all these years later they are finally being rolled out to two communities where our Nuu-Chah-nulth live," Sayers said.

When fully operational, there will be 10,000 cameras across Canada, with over 3,000 of those in B.C.

Municipalities with populations over 5,000 are responsible for paying for the majority of the costs of the cameras, estimated at $3,000 per member, according to information shared with local B.C. governments in 2023.

Body-worn cameras were first used in the province by the Delta Police Department in 2021. The force now has 21 officers wearing the cameras, with another 16 to be added in 2024.

After starting a process to adopt body-worn cameras in 2009, the Vancouver Police Department equipped 85 officers with the cameras for a pilot project this year.