It’s on: Anaheim cops to be equipped with body-cams

The Anaheim City Council has unanimously agreed to spend more than $1 million to buy 250 so-called body cams for the city’s police force – and officials say they expect every officer to be wearing a device by next spring.

Anaheim would become the first city in Orange County to require the body-mounted cameras.

Police Chief Raul Quesada supports the move. He says the department has been looking into the cameras ever since two fatal police shooting sparked riots in the city two years ago.

Anaheim’s decision to go with police body cams is part of a

national trend, especially with departments that have credibility issues with the communities they serve. After weeks of protest sparked by the shooting of an unarmed teenager, the

Ferguson, Missouri, Police Department recently agreed to use the devices. The LAPD has also been

testing them out.

The cameras are smaller than a cell phone, and they record both audio and video. They’re attached to the front of an officer’s uniform and are supposed to be turned on during just about every public encounter.

In Anaheim, the first cameras could be on the streets by November.