Body cameras deployed in Arizona prisons for transparency and safety
1,300 body cameras deployed in Arizona prisons
The Arizona Department of Corrections, Rehabilitation & Reentry deployed 1,300 body-worn cameras to state prisons. The technology is intended to increase transparency, improve documentation and make prisons safer. FOX 10's Nicole Krasean has the details.
PHOENIX - The Arizona Department of Corrections, Rehabilitation & Reentry (ADCRR) has rolled out 1,300 body-worn cameras to state prisons as part of its "Reimagining Corrections" initiative.
The new technology is intended to increase transparency and modernize the department's documentation.
What they're saying:
"It's kind of hard to refute something you can watch and listen to as opposed to taking a person's testimony," said Richard Michael Johnson, the department's deputy chief of emergency operations.
More than a thousand cameras have been distributed to some of the highest-security areas within Arizona state prisons.
The cameras were introduced in May as part of Director Ryan Thornell's goal to make the department safer for both staff and inmates amid reports of violence. The cameras also help modernize the facilities.
"That is the old camera system right there on the wall. So that one camera is supposed to cover this whole area. Now how many blind spots can you think of off the top of your head? Pretty much everywhere, right?" Johnson said.
He added that those blind spots are now being replaced with high-definition, first-person views. "We put the camera on the person and now everybody is a walking, talking system of documentation."
Officers check out the cameras daily for their entire shift. While the cameras are always recording video and audio in a passive mode, only the video is retained.
When activated, either manually by an officer or automatically by an act like the removal of a Taser from a belt, both video and audio are retained for review with a two-minute pre-event buffer.
"If it's somebody that's in medical stress, somebody not being compliant, those are absolutely times when you should be recording," Johnson explained. "And the reason for that two-minute retention is just because you're not involved in an incident right now, and you didn't start the recording, it doesn't mean you didn't capture an event."
The cameras, which cost about $900 each, were created by Arizona-based company Axon. Axon Corrections Director Zach Austin said the partnership with ADCRR is rooted in helping to create transparency within prison walls.
"Providing the truth and clarity in terms of what happened in a given investigation, I think really helping agencies get to the right answer faster," Austin said.
Ryan Thornell, ADCRR Director, on prison violence | Extended interview
Ryan Thornell, Director of the Arizona Department of Corrections, Rehabilitation, and Reentry (ADCRR), sat down with FOX 10 to talk about the recent violence, some deadly, in Arizona state prisons and what's being done about it.
By the numbers:
Data collected by ADCRR shows how the cameras are helping with inmate grievance reporting in the areas where they've been rolled out. "In two months, we've already seen around an 11-12% reduction in time that it takes in order to get those answers back to the inmates," Johnson said.
He also noted that use-of-force reports in those areas have decreased by approximately 17%.
What's next:
While more data is needed, staff members are hopeful that the successful numbers will help quell fear and stigma surrounding Arizona's state prisons.
"There may be a stigma out there of what the prison environment is like and if we can be as transparent as to what the department entails, it can help with the public's opinion of us and what we do and they can be assured that they're safe from day to day," Johnson said.