The Metropolitan Police Department has doubled its number of body-worn cameras, and Interim Police Chief Peter Newsham says the force has more than any other police department in the country.
MPD now has 2,600 body cameras for officers. Newsham said at a news conference that officials responded to community demands.
"I think the rollout of these cameras does improve our legitimacy. It's something the community has asked for," he said.
The $5 million body camera program began more than a year ago with a limited pilot program.
The expansion comes as police in D.C. and the nation come under increased scrutiny for shootings that involve officers. An MPD officer shot and killed 31-year-old Terrence Sterling on Sept. 11. One officer on the scene was wearing a body camera but did not turn it on until after the shooting.
Laywers for Sterling's family filed a $50 million lawsuit, News4 reported Thursday.
In the wake of Sterling's death, D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser ordered tighter protocols for when officers activate their cameras.
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"The chief of police ordered our officers to confirm that they had engaged their body-worn cameras when they were responding to a dispatch from our call center," she said Thursday.
