Body-Worn Camera Program

Body-Worn Camera Program 

Background

As of Monday, November 2nd, 2020, the Town and Country Police Department has fully implemented our Body Worn Camera program.

The Town and Country Police Department stands behind our mission of providing an exemplary level of service through professionalism, education, prevention and enforcement without prejudice or bias.  Through the guidance of our mission, vision and values, reasonable use of force is applied only when necessary. The Officers’ actions are a matter of public record, and our organization welcomes the opportunity for increased transparency through the use of body-worn cameras (BWCs).

In early 2018, The Town and Country Police Department partnered with Regional Justice Information Services (REJIS) and the US Department of Justices’ Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA), to begin our BWC program.  Spearheading the program in the fall of 2017, REJIS was awarded $350,000 in grant funding for the purchase of BWCs for participating police agencies within St. Louis County.  This BJA grant award was unique as it was one of the first to take a regional approach to BWC acquisition, as opposed to each agency filing for federal funds individually.  Additionally, during the application phase of this grant, the St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney’s office, the 21st Circuit Court (St. Louis County), and the US Attorney’s Office in the Eastern District of Missouri all wrote letters of support for the program.

The result of this program was the purchase and future deployment of 247 BWCs for the following seven (7) participating St. Louis County Municipal Police Departments:

  • Bellefontaine Neighbors PD
  • Brentwood PD
  • Clayton PD
  • Moline Acres PD
  • Richmond Heights PD
  • Town & Country PD
  • University of Missouri – St. Louis (UMSL) PD

The following is the Town and Country Police Department BWC Projected Deployment Timeline*:

  • Delivery of BWC equipment: April 2020 (Completed)
  • Server Configuration and Testing: October 2020 (Completed)
  • Training and Issuing of BWCs to Officers: October 2020 (Completed)
  • BWC Program Fully Operational: November 2020 (Completed)

* Some dates were delayed and subject to change due to technical issues or other complications outside of our control.

Community involvement is critical to any successful BWC program.  The Town and Country Police Department has developed a thorough policy regarding the use of BWCs.  A link to our policy can be found by clicking HERE.  We would like to invite our community to review this policy and provide any input.   Please contact us at 314-432-4696 to provide any suggestions and feedback.

Frequently Asked Questions

Town and Country Police Department Body-Worn Camera FAQ's