Reston District Station Officers to Begin Wearing Body Cameras in May

Police officers at the Reston District Station will be among the first to wear body cameras as the county-wide program begins next month.

This year, the Reston, Mason and Mount Vernon District Station, which took part in a pilot program in 2018, will receive a combined total of 416 cameras. Training on how to use the devices is currently underway.

The program is expected to result in 13 new positions, including three in the police department, eight in the Office of the Commonwealth’s Attorney, and two in the Department of Information Technology.

But it’s unclear when the rest of the county will receive the cameras. Although a three-year implementation plan with funding was originally planned for, the COVID-19 pandemic prompted Fairfax County Executive Bryan Hill to delay the rollout of the program.

The proposed budget — which was scaled back considerably in response to the COVID-19 pandemic — maintains an increase of $1.77 million to support the first full year of the program. The $4 million was first approved in late 2019 by the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors.

Colonel Edwin Roessler said the police department hopes the program through despite revisions to the latest budget.

“We are committed to seeing the body-worn camera program through to full implementation,” Roessler said.

Photo via Fairfax County Police Department