Cedar Park Police Chief Sean Mannix said body-worn cameras were phased into the department in 2014 as part of a successful pilot program.[/caption]

As of Oct. 16, Cedar Park Police Department officers are equipped with body-worn cameras, which allow officers to take still photos and video footage.

All 85 officers wear the cameras on their chest and must manually turn them on to begin recording video and audio.

At the end of an officer’s shift, he or she uploads the footage, which is available for a minimum of 90 days. The footage would be reviewed on a case-by-case basis if necessary, such as for evidence gathering during a trial, Cedar Park Police Chief Sean Mannix said. Footage cannot be edited by anyone.

On average, the footage currently takes about 30 minutes to an hour to upload, said Tim Scott, director of information services for the city of Cedar Park. Scott said within the next six months to a year, officers could be able to upload footage wirelessly.

The department is authorized to use four additional cameras for future personnel, Mannix said.

Cameras cost approximately $500 each and were purchased with CPPD funds allocated for the cameras.

“It’s of real benefit to the officers and to the community,” Mannix said. “The biggest success we’re seeing [is that] it gives us an accurate, unbiased portrayal of the interaction between the officer and the community member that they are interacting with.”

The cameras were phased into the special operations sector of the department as a pilot in 2014, which was successful, Mannix said.

Some of the challenges with using the cameras include limited technology, he said, such as only having front-facing cameras without the ability to record left and right of the officer.