With just under 160,000 residents, Clarksville is the 5th largest city in the state with a police department around 300 strong, and soon their officers could be wearing new body cameras.
“Not only promotes transparency, but it promotes trust with the community,” Mayor Kim McMillan said.
After initially being denied for the U.S. Department of Justice grant in 2015, the city applied again this year, and is now the only city in Tennessee that was awarded a federal grant.
“We got the largest grant award of any of the 55 cities in our population bracket that was given money,” McMillan explained.
Already in Middle Tennessee, police body cameras have proven to be a pivotal piece of evidence in situations involving officers. The public may recall body cam footage from last summer showing the moments an Algood police officer came face to face with Floyd Cook, a convicted rapist wanted on meth trafficking charges.
"We were pleased to learn that officer Valencia's body cam captured the event because that was very helpful," District Attorney Bryant Dunaway said at the time.
“We want to make sure the public knows that we’re doing everything we can, doing it the right way to keep the public safe,” McMillan said.
Long before police officers in Clarksville put on body cameras, there will be several public hearings so officials can gage how the community feels.
Before that happens, however, the city must match every penny of the $337,500 dollar grant, a feat the mayor has been confident they'll accomplish.
“The council had already voted to approve the grant process. They were already behind it 100 percent,” said McMillan.
Clarksville's police chief has believed if everything goes as planned, his officers will have body cameras in late 2018 or early 2019. The public hearings have not been scheduled yet.
