ST PAUL, Minn. — Editor's Note: The video above first aired on KARE 11 on May 5, 2022.
The Minnesota State Patrol says it's now fully equipped with body-worn cameras and in-car cameras for the entire agency.
Since the rollout began on Dec. 1, 2021, the State Patrol says it installed 644 in-car camera systems and issued 613 body cameras to sworn patrol members. Another 92 cameras were given to non-sworn members.
In total, the department has issued 705 body cameras and 1,349 camera systems in five months.
"Although we’d like to think every state trooper is perfect, we are human beings just like everyone else," said Minnesota State Patrol Chief Col. Matt Langer in a statement. "Capturing interactions on body-worn cameras will help hold everyone accountable because they provide a record of what actually occurred between the trooper and the member of the public."
The project was funded by the state legislature and signed into law by Governor Tim Walz in 2021.
According to state patrol, the cameras will be activated during any contact between troopers and the general public. Under Minnesota law, body cam video is generally private/nonpublic, except when the video is part of an active criminal investigation. People recorded in police body-worn camera video, including officers, can have access to the video and request that it be made public.
Minnesota State Troopers are now projected to record more than 3,000 pieces of video evidence per day across the state.
Just last month, troopers recorded more than 96,000 pieces of video - which amounts to nearly 20,000 hours of video, according to the agency.
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