Jackson County Sheriffs Department Receive Body Cameras

The Jackson County Sheriffs Department now equipped with body cameras, thanks to a recent grant.

K9 Deputy Miquela Sullivan said the department received their first batch of body cams a few weeks ago. Sullivan said the body cams are a handy piece of equipment for the department to have.

“It covers all of our hind ends,” Sullivan said. “Whenever we go into a hostile situation especially with me being a K9 deputy. If my dog is on a track, and they want to say he did this he did that, it gives us something to base why we did what we did.”

Sullivan said the body cam will be useful in a variety of situations. She said she thinks the most useful aspect is it can be used in court.

“Any confusion that comes off a traffic stop or any incident in general, it gives us something to reflect back on,” Sullivan said. “It can be used for evidence, which is the main reason specifically for field sobriety testing, DUIs, that sort of thing.”

The delivery of the cams split into two deliveries.

“Knock on wood we haven’t had any reason to pull anything yet, but we’re still getting used to them,” Sullivan said. “As far as I know, Jackson County has never had any good body cams, but these seem pretty good and easy to use.”

Sullivan said her body cam is especially important to her as a K9 officer.

“He’s also a bite dog,” Sullivan said. “So, if it goes to court of him holding on after I released him I can pull the footage for that. If he’s on a track, it’s constantly recording him because of course he’s out in front of me. It’s very beneficial for me, but also the other deputies included on regular day-to-day calls.”