Time for Manitoba to mandate, fund police body cameras

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This article was published 13/11/2023 (718 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Contradictory testimony heard last week at an inquest into the 2019 death of Michael Bagot is a stark example of why it’s time for the provincial government to mandate body cameras for all police officers in Manitoba.

It’s long overdue.

Firefighter paramedic Jeffrey Peters testified Nov. 10 at a provincial inquest a Winnipeg police officer held a knee on Bagot’s back during an arrest, after the man was handcuffed and laying on the ground.

Cops deny it. Officers who testified at the inquest say no such restraint was used on Bagot, who stopped breathing and died three days later (May 24, 2019).

Peters, who administered CPR on Bagot when he arrived on the scene, was steadfast during cross examination at the inquest, telling Winnipeg police lawyer Kimberley Carswell he knows what he saw.

The paramedic wasn’t alone. A civilian witness who worked at a nearby restaurant told the Independent Investigation Unit of Manitoba he, too, saw an officer kneeling on top of Bagot after an altercation on a Winnipeg Transit bus.

So there’s a dispute over the facts — one which could have been easily cleared up if local police officers were equipped with body cameras, like the ones used in many other Canadian and U.S. cities.

The cameras, about the size of a pack of cards, fit on the front of an officer’s uniform and record video and audio when police interact with the public. They provide investigators, the courts and public with important evidence that can be used in criminal cases and to help settle questions about alleged police misconduct.

The cameras hold officers responsible for their actions and verify claims by citizens who allege they were mistreated. They’re win-win.

So why does Winnipeg, a city with one of the highest violent crime rates in Canada, still not have this useful technology?

“The cameras hold officers responsible for their actions and verify claims by citizens who allege they were mistreated. They’re win-win.”

Cost, mostly. Body cams and the system to operate them are expensive. The most recent estimates pegged the purchase of about 1,300 cameras for the Winnipeg Police Service at $7 million. The annual cost of operation, which includes administering massive amounts of stored data, is around $4 million.

That’s a lot of money in a police budget that’s been under intense scrutiny in recent years, including calls by some to “defund” police.

Winnipeg police, meantime, have been calling for body cams for years. The service has argued they would bring greater transparency and provide officers with protection against unfair or inaccurate allegations of misconduct.

There has been some support on city council, but never enough to secure funding. Proposed spending for the cameras has shown up in multi-year capital budget plans. However, they’ve either been kicked down the road or cancelled altogether in favour of other costs deemed a higher priority.

The Calgary Police Service equipped its officers with body cams in 2019, and many other Canadian cities (including Vancouver, Edmonton and London, Ont.) are experimenting with the technology through pilot projects.

The RCMP began rolling out its body cam program earlier this year in some parts of Canada. In March, the Alberta government became the first province to announce it will make the cameras mandatory for all municipal police forces.

Body cams are not a panacea. The technology has been researched throughout North America with mixed results, including whether the surveillance reduces complaints against law enforcement or cuts down on inappropriate use of force.

There have been concerns police officers can shut off the cameras when it suits them (although they have to answer to authorities when they do), as well as questions around civilian privacy breaches. Legitimate issues have also been raised about how video data is stored and who has access to the images when a complaint is made against police.

Cost is a real issue. Many have questioned whether the millions spent per year on body cams could be better used elsewhere, such as crime prevention, addictions treatment and poverty reduction. They are all legitimate arguments.

Nevertheless, it would seem foolish not to take advantage of technology that could answer critical questions in cases like that of Michael Bagot’s.

This debate has gone on too long. It’s time for the province to step in and mandate body cameras under provincial legislation.

It would take time to equip all police forces and the province would likely have to fund it. But openness and transparency in policing is far too important to ignore any longer.

Body cameras should be mandatory for all cops in the province.

tom.brodbeck@freepress.mb.ca

Tom Brodbeck
Columnist

Tom Brodbeck is an award-winning author and columnist with over 30 years experience in print media. He joined the Free Press in 2019. Born and raised in Montreal, Tom graduated from the University of Manitoba in 1993 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in economics and commerce. Read more about Tom.

Tom provides commentary and analysis on political and related issues at the municipal, provincial and federal level. His columns are built on research and coverage of local events. The Free Press’s editing team reviews Tom’s columns before they are posted online or published in print – part of the Free Press’s tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press’s history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates.