Wisconsin poll finds strong support for police body cameras

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Almost all the Wisconsin residents polled by a police advocacy group say they want officers to wear body cameras, although few departments use them.

Ninety-four percent of 400 respondents to the Wisconsin Professional Police Association’s 2018 phone survey said were in favor of requiring law enforcement officers to wear body cameras, Wisconsin Public Radio reported.

A similar survey in 2017 found that 84 percent of respondents supported body cameras.

There isn’t comprehensive data on how many of the state’s more than 500 law enforcement agencies use body cameras. Axon, a company that manufactures the devices, told the association that about 60 agencies use body cameras.

Association Executive Director Jim Palmer says that while body cameras are relatively inexpensive, it is costly to store data that the devices collect.