YPD gives residents a glimpse of a high-tech future

YOUNGSTOWN — Youngstown Police Department officials on Thursday night demonstrated the body cameras that have been given a trial run on city streets for two months.

Officers also discussed some city policies that will accompany the new technology.

YPD currently has 16 officers testing out the Axon Body 3 cameras. The officers are assigned to all three patrol shifts and are in the Neighborhood Response Unit, vice unit and the community police unit.

Axon is one of the companies that YPD is considering for the new cameras.

Officer Malik Mostella said the department is ready to make the final decision on which cameras to purchase and plans to have them for all officers by the end of summer.

“It’s time for us to go ahead and get it done,” Mostella said.

Mostella said the first thing Chief Carl Davis wanted to do when appointed in January was to have a better relationship with the community.

“It was something that we were told the community wanted so we went out and got [them],” Mostella said.

James Ross, a spokesperson for Axon, demonstrated how the cameras worked and explained the benefits for both the police and the community.

Ross said the cameras are designed to expose the “objective truth” of officer-involved situations.

The body cameras can be turned on manually or automatically when an officer pulls out a gun or an electronic stun device.

The camera includes such features as multiple microphones and night vision, Ross said. The camera also has live-stream features and can track the exact location of each officer.

The camera is constantly recording 30 seconds of material and refreshing. When the officer presses the button to record, the camera will also capture what happened 30 seconds before the recording was triggered.

Sgt. Jose Morales Jr., who oversees the body camera program for YPD, said the trial has been a success after two months of use.

“The cameras have been doing exactly what they were designed to do,” Morales said.

Morales said the body cameras are beneficial in three ways: to train officers, for evidence in a case and to handle complaints about officers.

Morales also reviewed the proposed body camera policy that includes when officers are required to record and when officers are prohibited from recording.

Officers are required to record:

• All calls for service and self-initiated activities;
• While responding to calls for service with emergency lights and sirens;
• At the onset of a vehicle or foot pursuits;
• Traffic and pedestrian stops;
• Arrests;
• Searches;
• Prisoner and citizen transports;
• Any situation an officer believes that video footage may be useful.

Officers are prohibited from recording:

• In private places like dressing rooms, restrooms, etc.;
• When someone is receiving medical treatment;
• Conversations of citizens and/or officers unrelated to investigative or enforcement;
• When interacting with confidential informants or undercover officers;
• Internal law enforcement matters.

YPD will permanently keep recordings associated with homicide and sexual assault investigations as well as police dog incidents.

For many encounters with the public including arrests, investigative stops and use of force, video footage will be kept for up to five years. For less serious incidents, the footage will be kept for two years.

Harriet Carlock, a resident of Youngstown, participated in the town hall to learn more about the body cameras.

She expressed shock at the body camera footage presented that showed what officers have to deal with while on patrol.

“I was glad I actually came,” Carlock said.

This story was originally published July 16, 2021 at 3:52 AM with the headline "YPD gives residents a glimpse of a high-tech future."