Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti promised citizens that this year would see more than 7,000 local police officers equipped with body cameras. Seeming to fall in line with this promise, the LAPD has ordered more than 3,000 “smart tasers” that will automatically activate these body cameras whenever they’re used.
Hot on the heels of announcing its plan to buy some 8,000 body cameras from Taser, the Los Angeles Police department has ordered up actual Tasers that automatically record on those Taser cameras when fired. Reuters says that the Department ordered 3,000 of Taser’s X26P smart weapon, a model that was announced two years ago, and is designed to work in tandem with Taser’s body recorder. When connected by Bluetooth, the camera can store footage while the weapon keeps a log of how it was used, including things like when it was fired, and if the electrical wires made contact. The camera also won’t start recording until the weapon’s safety is switched off.
