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Trooper Justin Wagner of the Vermont State Police wears a new body camera at the Williston, Vt., Barracks on Friday, Nov. 20, 2020. (Vermont State Police – Adam Silverman)
A plan to expand the use of body and dashboard cameras by law enforcement at all levels in New Hampshire is advancing with bipartisan support and minimal public opposition, despite the fact that some police leaders say the cameras aren’t necessary.
If bills now being debated in the House and Senate become law, the use of video technology will expand from a handful of local police departments to include all New Hampshire state troopers, with a $1 million fund established to help local police departments acquire the technology as well.
Bipartisan bill would expand use of body cameras to all N.H. state police
A New Hampshire Department of Safety State Police vehicle. A bill would expand body camera to state troopers and other police departments. GEOFF FORESTER / Monitor file
Trooper Justin Wagner of the Vermont State Police wears a new body camera at the Williston, Vt., Barracks on Nov. 20, 2020. Body camera use is being expanded for the New Hampshire State Police. Adam Silverman / Vermont State Police
Published: 3/11/2021 2:14:53 PM
A plan to expand the use of body and dashboard cameras by law enforcement at all levels in New Hampshire is advancing with bipartisan support and minimal public opposition, despite the fact that some police leaders say the cameras aren’t necessary.
What would police reform look like in NH — and will it happen? sentinelsource.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from sentinelsource.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
By Dave Solomon - Granite State News Collaborative
• Dec 27, 2020
Credit Dan Tuohy/NHPR
A long list of changes to the way New Hampshire police are recruited, trained, supervised and held accountable is about to move from the recommendation stage to implementation, with potentially far-reaching consequences for law enforcement and the public at large.
The Commission on Law Enforcement Accountability, Community and Transparency has been quietly at work since June. Although its meetings over the summer were public, they received little attention amid the noise of a national election, a public health crisis and a struggling economy.
That’s about to change with the new year, as legislation to implement the commission’s findings begins to work its way through the State House and the reality of what is being proposed becomes more apparent to the many stakeholders.
Julian Jefferson, a staff attorney in the New Hampshire Public Defenders office, has represented victims of racism and experienced it firsthand.
“I am a Black man,” he said in his testimony before the Commission on Law Enforcement Accountability, Community and Transparency. “I have lived in New Hampshire since 2008. I have been working in the criminal justice system since 2011. I can tell you that racism exists in this state and in our criminal justice system.”
Jefferson, who also served on the commission, described a litany of racially charged personal experiences and client prosecutions he’s had to defend.
“I have defended three different clients in cases where police used excessive force and then turned around, with the complicity of prosecutors, to overcharge cases. Thankfully for those clients, the citizens that served on their juries saw the excessive use of force for what it was,” he testified.