Over 150 Omaha Police officers will be outfitted with brand new body cams next week, bringing the total number of officers with the cameras to 275.
The addition of the 160 cameras will bring another layer of transparency to the department, something OPD has been striving to do. For years, dashcam footage from an officer's cruiser has been the best way to review police work in action, but that is changing.
Chief Todd Schmaderer tells 6 News the the body cameras provide a look into the department's professionalism. “It’s amazing when I see the footage and I see it a lot in pursuit reviews, internal affairs, in the course of criminal investigation, I can say 999 out of 1,000 times, it shows officers acting professionally and carrying them with the professional duty the citizens of Omaha would be proud of.”
Investigators will have several angles at their disposal from uniform patrol to Gang Unit officers. For example, when Omaha police caught up to the man in a stolen car who had just shot and killed Pottawattamie County Sheriff’s Deputy Mark Burbridge, a cruiser cam recorded everything. Officers on the ground were then able to offer other angles with their body cameras.
The body cameras Omaha Police use are automatic, so it comes on when an officer turns on the emergency lights, readies a Taser or draws a gun. The video then automatically downloads at the precinct and a separate unit and a “DREAM” team manages the 40,000 to 50,000 videos that come in every month. If you're wondering, DREAM stands for Digitally Recorded Evidence Access Management.