WASHINGTON — Spurred by the Ferguson, Mo., shooting, President Barack Obama is calling for $75 million in federal spending to get 50,000 more police to wear body cameras that record their interactions with civilians. However, Obama is not seeking to pull back federal programs that provide military-style equipment to local law enforcement.
The White House announced the conclusions of a three-month review Monday as the president was holding a series of meetings with his Cabinet, civil-rights leaders, law enforcement officials and others to go over the findings.
Obama is proposing a three-year, $263 million spending package to increase use of body-worn cameras, expand training for law enforcement and add more resources for police department reform. The package includes $75 million for to help pay for the small, lapel-mounted cameras to record police on the job, with state and local governments paying half the cost.
The White House has said the cameras could help bridge deep mistrust between law enforcement and the public. It also potentially could help resolve the type of disputes between police and witnesses that arose in the Ferguson shooting.
Read Tuesday's Arkansas Democrat-Gazette for more.