Lynwood police testing officer body cameras

LYNWOOD, Ill. (WLS) -- The police department in south suburban Lynwood is one of the first in the Chicago area to actively test having cameras on its officers.

Two inches tall, light, it can be clipped to a pocket or vest and activated by voice or button push.

"This is the direction that law enforcement is moving, that all departments will be wearing soon enough, and by getting the process approved now, we're ahead of the curve," said Deputy Chief Terry Shubert, Lynwood Police.

Lynwood is a village of 9,000 residents, with a police force of 25 sworn officers four cops on the street per shift. Each one will have a body camera, and the plan is that with the push of a button they will record every encounter no matter how complex or seemingly trivial.

At the end of an officer's shift, everything on his camera is loaded by officer name onto a police department server with tightly limited access. It would be used for investigation, court cases, training. Even with a small department, that could end up being a lot of material.

"As for now, our plans are to keep it permanently," Shubert said.

The camera may not always be in the ideal position to catch everything, but middle body movement, and, of course audio, are critical. The camera does not reveal all nor solve all, but is meant to provide an unbiased picture.

"I think it'll help both us and the public," said Officer Lawrence Weinbrecht. "It'll prevent false accusations and more accurate reporting of occurrences as they happen."

Lynwood has purchased ten body cameras though it has not yet passed final judgment on the model it'll be using. For now, this is a pilot program.

Before it goes full-time, Lynwood is opting to wait until the state General Assembly comes up with more specific, legal guidelines for body cam use, which may not happen for a few more months.