Euclid Police Department receives state grant to buy body cameras department-wide
Governor Mike DeWine’s office awarded nearly 5 million dollars in grant funds to police departments throughout the state. The Euclid Police Department is a recipient of $120,000 of those funds.
Right now, Euclid police have an optional body camera policy. Officers have to buy the cameras on their own, a price that can average out to about $1,000.
Out of the about 90 staff members within the department, only about a dozen have body cameras.
“Officers don’t want to be forced into such a large expense on their own part. They are quite expensive and the maintenance and the storage fees are expensive, but the city decided they’d make it a priority and they’d fund this new project,” said Capt. Mitch Houser.
Houser said, by and large, body cameras are something the officers support.
In September of 2021, the Euclid City Council approved the purchasing of body cameras and updating dash cameras for the entire department. It’s a project that would cost more than $400,000.