Taser International confirms CMPD’s order of body cameras

Taser International confirmed it has received the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department’s large order of body cameras.

The Seattle-based police technology company said the department ordered 1,425 body cameras, five years of warranty coverage and use of Evidence.com, a cloud-based storage and management system where police videos are automatically uploaded.

According to the company’s website, each cordless camera has, among other features, a 130-degree lens and multiple mounting options. Each costs $399.

Taser also said it has received orders from police departments in California, Indiana, Georgia, Arizona, Texas and Philadelphia. The company said the orders were received in the first quarter of 2015 and are expected to ship in the first and second quarters of 2015.

In January, the Charlotte City Council voted unanimously to spend $7 million on body cameras for its police force, vowing to equip each patrol officer with the lipstick-size device by October. Training and deployment will take six to nine months.

Responding to recent police shootings across the county, local civil rights activists, the American Civil Liberties Union and police unions have all said police need the cameras.

To date, Taser International said, 16 major police departments nationwide have placed orders for its body cameras.

This story was originally published March 31, 2015 at 8:54 AM with the headline "Taser International confirms CMPD’s order of body cameras."