Danish police are expanding their use of body-worn cameras in their operations, and here are the details...
Police in the five regions – South East Jutland Police, Central and West Jutland Police, South and South Jutland Police, Fyn Police, and West Copenhagen Police – are implementing wider use of body cameras (cameras that attach to police clothing) and helmets in various police duties.
In 2021, the police conducted a pilot project for body and helmet cameras, focusing on testing the legal guidelines for their practical use. Currently, police in the five selected districts will begin using body and helmet cameras more systematically than before, this time with a focus on gaining practical experience in their operation.
The pilot project was carried out in 2021 in the Copenhagen police and was primarily aimed at testing the National Police Guidelines, which describe the legal framework and the rights of registered persons (i.e., citizens as well) regarding the police's use of body cameras and helmets.
In addition, the pilot project was also aimed to some extent at gaining practical experience in the use of cameras in an operational context, but now it is time to gain more practical experience in this area, so the police in the aforementioned areas will urgently implement the use of body and helmet cameras in various operational tasks.
National Police Chief Inspector Peter Ekberg stated: “We need more practical experience in the use of body cameras in different operational contexts in order to move forward with reporting, … therefore we have now chosen to test the use of body cameras and helmets more systematically, so that we can continually gain more knowledge regarding the potential proliferation of body cameras and helmets.”.
It should be noted that it will remain up to the police in the different regions to decide whether they wish - based on local needs and in accordance with the prepared guidelines - to use body cameras and helmets in individual tasks, while at the same time practical experience is being gained from the five police departments, which will therefore soon implement a wider use of body cameras and helmets.
Currently, some police departments already use body and helmet cameras in certain situations, for example in operations where there is a certain risk of confrontations, or in relation to patrols. In places and times where there is a risk of public disorder, for example, demonstrations and football matches.
Updating current guidelines
The National Police are currently updating the existing national guidelines on when to turn cameras on and off, so that it is not up to an individual officer to decide when this should happen.
Future experiences will also be shared between the five police departments with all other police departments to support their decisions regarding the use of cameras, just as they will form part of the national police framework for body and helmet cameras in the operational efforts of the Danish police.
The use of body and helmet cameras in the five police departments mentioned is expected to begin in the middle of this year.
Source: Statement from the National Police
