Vancouver police officers will wear body-mounted cameras for the first time Wednesday night while helping to evict campers from Oppenheimer Park.
The campers have been given until 10 p.m. to clear out, and Police Chief Jim Chu said officers will be watching when city workers start removing any tents and structures left after the deadline.
“You’re entitled to film in public places, all the cameramen know that. This is just an extension of something we’ve always been doing for certain events, but instead of a hand held or pole mounted camera, we have the body-worn video.”
Chu thinks many of the campers will also have their own cameras.
The campers have been set up in the park for several months, but last week a judge ruled they need to be out by 10 p.m. tomorrow due to safety concerns. After that, police are allowed to go in and assist in their removal.
The cameras are part of a pilot project but at this point, they won’t be worn all the time, due to the cost of using them.
Agencies/Canadajournal