VWPD buying body cams; SO hopes to

SCOTT TRUXELL/independent editor

It appears body cameras will be worn by officers with the Van Wert Police Department and perhaps deputies with the Van Wert County Sheriff’s Office..

The two law enforcement agencies have been awarded state grant money to purchase and use body cams. The police department will receive $84,468.77, and the sheriff’s office is getting $160,186.50.

A total of 108 law enforcement agencies will receive funding as part of the third round of the Ohio Body-Worn Camera Grant Program. Of those agencies, 32, including the two local law enforcement agencies, will use the money to create new body-worn camera programs. The remaining 76 agencies will use the grant funding to expand or upgrade existing technology.

Along with body cameras, Van Wert Police Chief Doug Weigle said the money will go toward dashboard cameras.

“I had a request from the officers, and Sgt. Adam Wehage went to a PELC course and did a presentation on body and dash cams,” he explained. “The department will use the body cameras to prove or prosecute claims from the public. An individual just received six months in jail for making a false claim against our officers.”

“The public should benefit by gaining trust in the police department and better video evidence for court,” he added.

According to Weigle, all uniformed officers will be required to wear body cameras.

“During all initial encounters with the public, the cameras should be turned on,” the chief stated. “I will determine if by law if there are situations they need to be turned off…children’s privacy interviews might be an example. Officers may turn them off while waiting on a tow truck or a witness to arrive.

As far as a timeline for body cam and dash cam use to begin, Weigle said that’s not yet been determined, but work is well underway.

“We are still in the beginning stages,” Weigle stated. “We will be working on our policies and procedures the next couple of weeks while we wait on the body cams to be shipped to our department. There are a lot of ins and outs to implementation.”

“We still need to determine what is required by Ohio Sunshine Laws to release to the public and news media,” he continued. “Obviously, we see people in different situations and we want to respect their privacies vs. what is required by law. There will be training for supervisors and all operators of the cameras.”

As noted, the Van Wert County Sheriff’s Office has been awarded a grant of more than $184,000 to purchase body cams and develop a program. However, that amount is far short of the $313,000 requested by Sheriff Tom Riggenbach, which creates questions if the program will proceed or not. He said he does not have the money in his budget to cover the near $130,000 gap.

Like Chief Weigle, Riggenbach said body cameras provide benefits to both his department and the public.

“Body cameras will provide us the ability to review different situations that deputies are involved in,” Riggenbach said. “Many of these situations will allow us to improve/adjust training that is provided to deputies in an effort to continue to improve the job we do. They will also allow us to review interactions with the public, helping us identify good work the deputies do and address anything that a deputy needs to improve on, all of which also benefits the public.”

If body cams are indeed purchased by the sheriff’s office, Riggenbach said deputies will be required to wear them based on their assignment area.

“There will be requirements of when the device will be turned on,” Riggenbach explained. “There will also be exceptions to using the device based on the law as well as other factors. These situations will all be covered by policy.”

If the purchase is made, Riggenbach said there will be training for deputies on how the devices work, how to use them etc., and he noted there will be a period of time needed for deputies to get used to utilizing them in their daily duties. Based on funding and other factors, there has not been a decision made on what the timeline might be.

The Van Wert Post of the Ohio State Highway Patrol is already equipped with body cameras. According to Lt. Joseph Sisco, troopers have worn body cameras since 2022.