Monday, May 16, 2022 — Beginning this month, City of Falls Church Police Officers will be equipped with Body Worn Cameras and begin recording all calls-for-service. All sworn members of the Police Department (including Public Safety Aides) were issued Body Worn Cameras and trained on how and when to use the devices to document recordings of law enforcement activity and interactions. The new Body Worn Camera technology complements the existing in-car dash cameras, which the City of Falls Church Police Department has utilized for over a decade.

“Deploying Body Worn Cameras is an important undertaking for our City, because we want to build on the established relationship between law enforcement and our community,” said Chief Mary Gavin. “Body Worn Cameras also help the Police Department meet several of the key objectives as defined by the Use of Force Review Committee, including improved agency accountability and standardizing video evidence when documenting uses of force.”

Body Worn Cameras are relatively small devices that record interactions between members of the public and officers. The devices are activated either manually at the officer’s discretion or automatically, such as when an officer enables their patrol car’s emergency lights. Body Worn Cameras capture both video and audio, and will be worn on the front of the officer’s uniform or their outermost garment, such as a jacket. Footage from a crime or other policy activity will provide officers another tool they can use to collect evidence for the purposes of criminal cases while instilling greater public confidence in law enforcement.

“We’re very fortunate to have a high level of trust in the community, and Body Worn Cameras will allow us to continue to build upon that trust with technology and transparency,” said Chief Gavin.

The public should begin seeing Police Officers and Public Safety Aides wearing Body Worn Cameras as soon as Monday, May 16, 2022. For additional details, please visit www.fallschurchva.gov/BWC.