Edmonton police rollout of body-worn cameras comes with $16M price tag

The Edmonton Police Service is spending $16.2 million to equip its members with body-worn cameras in a rollout of the technology required by the provincial government.

The Edmonton police commission approved the funding this year to pay Axon Public Safety Canada for the equipment and systems, which the police service chose in a non-competitive process, according to the commission's annual report. 

"The commission approved the purchase of body cameras from existing police funding to be compliant with the government's mandate, with the understanding that the $16 million is over five years, and includes hardware and software," commission spokesperson John Statton wrote to CBC News in an email Monday. 

City council's executive committee is scheduled to review the annual report at a meeting Wednesday. 

The commission is obliged to report to city council all contracts awarded in a non-competitive process. 

Anne Stevenson, Ward O-day'min city councillor and member of the police commission, believes the province should pitch in on the costs. 

"This was a provincial decision and if this is a service and a product they see value in then I also hope they would step up to cover those additional costs," Stevenson said in an interview Monday. 

Stevenson emphasized that she does not speak on behalf of the commission itself. 

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Statton said the commission doesn't know what kind of contribution — if any — it can expect from the Alberta government to offset costs related to the mandated requirement. 

"The commission is not seeking an increase to the EPS budget as part of the city's fall budget adjustments, and the police service is using funds from within the existing budget to pay for costs associated with body cameras this year," Statton said.

EPS started issuing cameras to 280 officers in various units in September as part of the service's rollout. Alberta Public Safety Minister Mike Ellis announced in March 2023 that body-worn cameras would become mandatory for all police officers in Alberta. 

• Body-worn cameras to be mandatory for all police officers in Alberta, province says
• Edmonton Police Service begins rollout of body-worn cameras

Arthur Green, a spokesperson for the Public Safety and Emergency Services ministry, said local police agencies are adopting the technology to enhance transparency, accountability and community trust.

"The use of body-worn cameras will increase public safety by documenting the actions of law enforcement and the public, collecting better evidence and reducing the time it takes to resolve complaints," Green said in a statement. 

The statement didn't include specifics on whether the government will be providing any additional funding for the technology.

Green said the province is working on a competitive request for proposals to source a technology vendor for body-worn cameras. It is expected to be posted on its website in the coming days.

The province also expects the full rollout of the body-worn cameras to be completed in the 2025-26 fiscal year, Green said. 

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Paul Moreau, president of the Criminal Trial Lawyers' Association, said video can be the best piece of evidence in a court of law and body-worn cameras can help with transparency.

"Many times, of course, it is the behaviour of an accused person that is being recorded and examined. But other times it is the behaviour of the police that is under question," Moreau said. "And the camera works both ways in that context."

Moreau also noted that Edmonton has been slow to adopt the technology compared to Calgary, which completed its rollout in 2019. 

"Chief [Dale] McFee and the Edmonton Police Service are very late to the party here," Moreau said. "Police services all over Alberta and all over Canada have been employing body-worn cameras for a very long time."