KANSAS CITY, Mo. — About a year after Independence police officers started wearing body cameras, the department says that the program has changed the way its staff interacts with residents and collects evidence – and that the cameras are here to stay.
The Independence Police Department received a grant from the United States Department of Justice in September 2023 to pay for 200 body-worn cameras. Until that point, IPD officers were not outfitted with body cameras.
IPD initially told The Star that it hoped to implement the body camera program in January 2024 . Last August, the department shared on Facebook that all officers had been issued cameras…