BODY WORN CAMERAS

Public-facing Special Constables and Uniform Officers will be equipped with body worn cameras. Auxiliary members will not be issued body worn cameras.

​A police officer will turn on the body worn camera prior to arriving at a call for service; when they start investigating an individual; or when they are asking a person questions for the purpose of collecting their information.

Body worn cameras continually buffer a thirty second loop of film in stand-by mode so when the officer starts the recording, the previous thirty-seconds are captured. There is no audio recorded in the thirty-second buffer recording prior to the record button being activated.

A police officer will turn off the body worn camera when the call for service or investigation is complete or when the officer determines that continuous recording is no longer serving its intended purpose.

No. Officers will record for investigative or enforcement purposes.  Body worn cameras will not be  recording during:

• General patrol
• Administrative tasks
• At community events
• For non-investigative functions

​The body worn camera is in plain view, and the camera has a red light indicating it has been activated. Members are trained to give notice as soon as reasonably possible that a body worn camera is in operation. The timing of this notice may vary depending on the context of the encounter.

At the end of every shift members dock the cameras for charging encrypted audio and video files are uploaded to the cloud. Videos can only be deleted by authorized personnel in accordance with the retention schedule. A video that is part of an active investigation or court matter will not be deleted.

Only the Digital Evidence Management Unit staff will be permitted to edit/vet the body worn camera data, as per the Service procedure.

Police officers are trained on how to manage situations that may be sensitive in nature. Appropriate vetting and editing of body worn camera data will be done for disclosure purposes, as required.

Police officers are trained on how to manage situations that may be sensitive in nature, such as when children are present, during a sexual assault or domestic violence investigation, or when a person is in a state of undress. Body worn cameras will typically not be used in hospitals, school, places of worship, courtrooms, etc.

Occupants in a private residence can ask an officer to not record, unless the officer is there in exigent circumstances or on the authority of a search warrant. In this case, the officer will continue to record.

Under the Municipal Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (MFIPPA), an individual can submit a Freedom of Information request for footage.

Videos will only be deleted in accordance with retention periods.

Body worn camera footage will only be released to the general public or media with the explicit authorization of the Chief of Police where a compelling public interest exists.

Yes, a procedure has been approved and it provides Cobourg Police Service members with operational direction that includes but is not limited to recording in private and public places; retention and security of videos; and responsibilities for supervisors. The procedure has been made available online at cobourgpoliceservice.com. Click here to access a copy of the procedure.

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Like any other allegation of misconduct, complaints can be made to the Office of the Independent Police Review Director. Once investigated, officers may face any number of disciplinary actions.

Cobourg Police Service is using the Axon Body 3 model

Axon Body 3 Camera features:

• 12+ hours of battery life
• 146°Diagonal field of view camera lens
• IP67 rating*
• US Military Standard MIL-STD-810G
• Drop Test 6 feet (Ambient),
  4 feet (Cold)
• Operating Temperature -20 C to 50 C
• 30 frames per second
• 1080P/ 720P/ 480P Resolution
• Encryption AES-XTS 128-bit
• Embedded GPS
• LTE Connectivity
• Wi-Fi Positioning (WPS)
• Bluetooth Interconnectivity
• 4 Microphones
• LCD Display
• Cameras have a thirty second buffer loop. There is no audio recorded in the thirty second buffer

The body worn camera program is part of the Officer Safety Plan. This all-encompassing program equips officers with the latest technology and streamlines digital evidence management capabilities and reporting processes, reducing time spent on administrative tasks. In turn, officers can return to serving the community faster.

The Officer Safety Plan includes:

• body worn cameras and required equipment
• hardware and software components required to implement the program, including: 
• training, including virtual reality empathy training for officers
• replacement tasers

The cost of implementing the Officer Safety Plan (which includes the body-worn camera program) will be covered by Cobourg Police Service Business Centre and comes at no cost to the taxpayers for the five-year contract term.

To view the Cobourg Police Service Body Worn Camera Procedure, please click HERE.

At a special Cobourg Police Services Board meeting held on November 4, 2021, Chief Paul VandeGraaf presented the financial impact of a proposed comprehensive Officer Safety Plan, which included the body worn camera program and replacement tasers. To view the report in the agenda of the special meeting, please click HERE.