Two new grants will enable Daleville PD to be better prepared

Two separate grants totaling $5,505 have been awarded to the Daleville Police Department.

Mayor Claudia Wigglesworth informed the city council and attendees about the grants at last week’s regular council meeting. The Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grants will provide $2,714 for the purchase of new stalker radars and $2,341 for new body cameras.

Department of Public Safety Director Harvey Mathis said the department will be able to purchase two new Stalker Radars and seven new body cameras with the money as soon as paperwork for the grants is completed and submitted.

The police department now has two stalker radars and Mathis said they will be placing the radars on “new vehicles” when they are purchased. “Each patrol does have a radar, but most are older models, no longer available for sale,” said Mathis. “The older radars do not pick up vehicles as efficiently, and we spend money repairing these obsolete models. The new stalkers have front and rear radars.

“Cars driving toward the police officer are detected, as well as cars driving up from behind are picked up with their speeds indicated. With more efficient ways to track errant drivers, we can hope to reduce the number of accidents.” The chief added that the department tries to acquire two new radar units per year.

In addition to new radar systems, police officers will be getting new body cameras. Currently, 12 body cameras are actively used but several officers do not have body cameras that should. “…part-time officers, the captain and the code enforcement officer also should have a camera. In addition, we need back-up cameras when cameras worn go down,” Mathis explained.

The police chief is cognizant of modern-day issues with police actions—true or not true— and wants not only the public protected, but also his officers. “Body cameras have become very important. They protect officers when allegations are made against them and (the body cameras) give the public accountability of an officer’s actions when needed,” he said. “If an officer is errant in his behavior the camera will catch that, and if allegations are being made up, the camera protects the officer. When a report comes in of officer misconduct, I am able to show the complainant what occurred.”

The Daleville department has written policy for the use of body cameras and utilizes those policies to train its officers on appropriate use of the tools.

“It is always my goal to ensure the officers have the most up-to-date equipment to properly do their jobs. In today’s society, law enforcement has come under greater scrutiny and through the use of cameras, we can give the officers a tool to protect themselves from false allegations, and a tool that will show when an officer has acted improperly,” Mathis said. “We have a goal to make our streets safe, and through the use of these new radars, we can enforce speeding and, in turn, reduce accidents. I want the public to know that our officers are out working to keep them safe and when the worst happens, know we will be there for them.”