Plainfield to upgrade body-worn, in-car cameras for police department

PLAINFIELD, Ind. (WISH) — Town leaders decided Monday night to upgrade the body-worn and in-car cameras for the police department.

A news release from the town said Installing more cameras and storage will allow transparency between law enforcement and the community while decreasing the costs of investigations. The contract with Motorola calls for spending $722,700, according to the Plainfield Town Council agenda for Monday night’s meeting.

The new cameras “will essentially always be recording,” said Police Chief Jared McKee in the release.

“The newest investment comes after the Plainfield Police Department has worked to increase training and public outreach in the wake of the civil unrest in 2020,” the release said. “Last year, the police department introduced a de-escalation simulator program. The simulator allows officers to participate in ‘real-life’ encounters, where they receive instant positive feedback when they successfully utilized de-escalation techniques. De-escalation has also been infused into all use of force trainings implemented by the department.”

Plainfield Police Department was the first in Hendricks County to have body-worn cameras, the release said.

Plainfield has a population of 35,200 west of Indianapolis.