Three Vendors Selected for Baltimore’s Body Worn Camera Pilot Program

Testing to begin in October, with full implementation set to start in early 2016

BALTIMORE, Md. (September 17, 2015)—Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake today announced that three vendors have been selected to participate in Baltimore’s Body Worn Camera Pilot Program.

“I am pleased that we are moving forward with our plans to bring body-worn cameras to our officers, because I believe they will help to bring a greater level of accountability and trust to our efforts to improve police-community relations,” said Mayor Rawlings-Blake. “I have made it clear that I want us to do this right, and this pilot program will ensure that we find the right solution for Baltimore.”

The three vendors will participate in a pilot program that is scheduled to begin October 26th and conclude on December 18th. The pilot program will equip a total of 155 officers among three of Baltimore City’s nine police districts – Eastern, Central and Western. The pilot calls for the cameras to be used on every shift, collecting and uploading video footage to a hosted storage facility.

Ten bids were initially submitted to the city, and after they were evaluated, the three vendor teams selected for participation in the pilot program are:

• Taser International, Inc., offering the Axon Body Camera and Amazon Web Services;
• Atlantic Tactical, Inc., offering the Vievu LE4 Camera and Microsoft Azure storage service; and
• Brekford Corporation, partnering with Panasonic using the Arbitrator Camera and Microsoft Azure storage service.

At the conclusion of the pilot, one of the three vendors is expected to be chosen for city-wide implementation of body-worn cameras starting in early 2016. In making the selection of the winning vendor, the City will incorporate feedback from the officers who participate in the pilot, as well as an evaluation of each vendor’s data collection process and other technical factors.