Body worn cameras (FOI)

​Request

Between 2011 and 2015 how many times has footage from body worn cameras on police officers been used for the conviction or included in evidence in court – a breakdown for each year.

The number of officers in the force who wear body worn cameras and what percentage this makes up out of the full team.

The total amount of money spent on investing in body worn cameras.

Response

The States of Jersey Police began a pilot scheme to trial body worn video (BWV) in 2013. 

The trial was successful and officers began to use the BWV cameras when on patrol duty from November 2014.

The number of cases where evidence was gained from BWV cameras is as follows:

Other than initial testing in 2013 and ​14, in all the above cases, the evidence obtained from the BWV camera was deemed sufficiently relevant to be added electronically to the case file. Should the case go to trial, this evidence would be disclosed to the prosecution and the suspect or their legal team. The disclosure of this evidence could be enough to prompt a guilty plea in court, saving the taxpayer significant sums in the cost of a ‘not guilty’ trial. The defence does not advise the States of Jersey Police if this was the case. It is not possible to determine in how many cases this has occurred.

The States of Jersey Police does not hold the information regarding the use or not of the BWV evidence in the trial itself. It is not possible to determine in how many cases the evidence was viewed in court without access to court transcripts. If the court were to access this information, the time taken to complete this task would be in excess of the 12.5 hours prescribed in the Freedom of information (Costs) (Jersey) Regulations 2014.

The States of Jersey Police currently employs 210 police officers and have 36 cameras at their disposal. There are sufficient cameras for all patrol officers on any normal duty day.

The States of Jersey Police initially bought six cameras in 2013 to run a pilot scheme. Each camera unit costs £571.30 which includes a licence to use the associated software, with upgrades for the life of the camera. Once the pilot scheme was complete and had been assessed as successful, 30 more cameras were purchased. Also purchased were sufficient harnesses and docking stations to enable charging and image downloading, a number of car mounting kits and an extended warranty for each camera. The total cost was £27,848. The funds used were not taken from taxpayers’ contributions but from the Criminal Offences Confiscation Fund.