DIGHTON – Chief Robert MacDonald is pleased to announce that the Dighton Police Department has been awarded a total of $27,350 in federal grant funds allocated by the Executive Office of Public Safety and Security’s Office of Grants and Research (OGR) Body Worn Camera (BWC) grant program.
With the use of grant funding, the Dighton Police Department will be able to equip every officer in the department, including reserve officers, with a body-worn camera. The grant will also fund an on-premises server for secure video storage for the department.
“The Dighton Police Department is very appreciative to have been awarded this funding as it will give us the opportunity to provide our officers with 21st-century technology to bolster transparency and accountability in our efforts,” Chief MacDonald said. “I want to especially recognize the leadership of Lieutenant Shawn Cronin in writing the successful grant application to help secure the funding, and thank the men and women of the Dighton Police Department for their continued willingness to strengthening community trust and upholding best policing practices.”
As part of the program, Chief MacDonald and Lieutenant Cronin will be working with Dighton police officers to adopt a comprehensive deployment plan for the body-worn cameras across the department.
The Body Worn Cameras (BWC) Grant Program will equip municipal police departments across the Commonwealth with body-worn cameras. Approximately $20 million in funding will be used to purchase 9,000 cameras over the span of five years. The Baker-Polito Administration included funding for this program as part of the FY22 Capital Budget Plan.
According to a recent poll by the Massachusetts Chief of Police Association, only 10% of Massachusetts municipal departments operate a body-worn camera program.
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