Scotia police receive funds for body-worn cameras

PHOTOGRAPHER: Chad Arnold

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SCOTIA — Village police officers will soon be equipped with body-worn cameras.

The village received a $26,000 grant earlier this month from the state’s Division of Criminal Justice Services to purchase 13 Motorola body-worn cameras and necessary technology to transfer video files.

It’s unclear when village officers will begin wearing the cameras. Police Chief Daniel Harrigan and Mayor David Bucciferro did not return requests seeking comment.

Scotia is the latest police force in the region to receive funding to purchase body-worn cameras, joining the ranks of departments in Schenectady and Niskayuna.

Several departments have added the cameras as a result of the Police Reform and Reinvention Collaborative, an executive order issued by former Gov. Andrew Cuomo in 2020 in the wake of the police murder of George Floyd in Minnesota. The collaborative was designed to give community stakeholders input on how to reform policing.

Members of the Saratoga County Sheriff’s Department will begin wearing the cameras following a recommendation by the county’s collaborative. Deputies there will receive a $750 annual stipend for wearing the cameras beginning in 2025.

Earlier this month, the Schenectady County Sheriff’s Department received a $46,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Justice and Bureau of Justice Assistance to purchase 23 body-worn cameras for its patrol unit.

The Sheriff’s Department recently added a new policy for the cameras and training for officers.

“The establishment of a BWC program will serve to enhance agency transparency and professionalism as well as assisting in building trust between law enforcement and the community,” Sheriff Dominic Dagostino wrote in a letter to lawmakers urging them to accept the funding.

Contact reporter Chad Arnold at: [email protected] or by calling 518-395-3120.