Body Cameras Will Soon Be Recording in Yakima County

Body cameras are common for police officers and sheriff's deputies all around the country but not yet in use in Yakima County. But that changes in August when Yakima County Sheriff's Deputies will begin wearing the body cams as they are commonly called in the industry. Deputies are already training with the new cameras that give supervisors and prosecutors valuable evidence in criminal cases.

The cameras will gather valuable evidence important to prosecutors

The cameras also save officers from being accused of actions they may not have taken in an arrest or other incident. While body cams haven't been used yet in the city Yakima Police have used in car dash cameras for years.
Now Yakima County Sheriff's Deputies will have both dash cameras and body cameras on Deputies. What's been preventing the use of body cameras in Yakima County? Mainly the cost. Authorities say it's expensive to maintain the equipment and the record keeping that goes along with collecting all that video. A state grant for $1 million dollars is helping to fund the new cameras for Deputies but more money will be needed to maintain the system.

Do you own a dash cam for your vehicle?

body and dash cameras aren't only popular with police officers but many drivers area purchasing the cameras for personal use. Drivers say the dash or rear view mirror cameras can save them from being accused of an action in an accident or other incidents involving their vehicle.