Grant Provides New Cameras for UPD Officers

SUNY Geneseo’s University Police Department (UPD) has been awarded a three-year $27,399 grant from the U.S. Bureau of Justice Assistance Body Worn Camera (BWC) program.

The BWC program will allow all on-duty, uniformed officers to wear BWCs to capture audio and video data of officer-citizen interactions. Ten UPD police officers and four lieutenants will have cameras. The command staff, including an inspector, the assistant chief, and the chief, will have shared access to an additional camera.

“BWCs can be an important step to improving police-community relationships,” explained SUNY Geneseo’s Assistant Chief Scott Ewanow, who will oversee the program. “They help ensure accurate and unbiased documentation of police interactions. Officers can also use the information to aid in submitting reports.”

As part of the BWC program, policies and procedures will be put in place, and all UPD members will be trained to use the devices and store the evidence generated by the cameras.

UPD expects to deploy the BWCs by the start of the 2022–23 academic year.