Goodyear officers to receive upgraded Tasers, body cams

The Goodyear Police Department received city approval to purchase upgraded tasers, body cameras and “associated technology” according to city council documents. 

The new technology will cost about $754,144. 

Part of the money will come from supplemental funding of about $471,700, which the city approved for the fiscal year 2022. The remaining $282,444 will come out of the department’s ongoing base budget for the Taser and body-worn camera program.

The police department received a quote from Axon Body Cameras and Tasers, formerly Taser International, Inc, in the summer of 2020, when the department had a total of 114 body cameras and tasers for its officers.

Today, the department has 140 body cameras and Tasers, which increased the contract amount, according to city council documents. The cost of the tasers and cameras was increased by the vendor in January.  

The city entered into a five-year contract with Axon in 2016, via the company’s 2015 contract with the city of Tempe.

The original contract provided the Goodyear Police Department with 76 cameras, “support equipment” and storage. 

Tasers, which have been used by the department since before 2000, “are implemented as an additional form of less-lethal force and body-worn cameras document officer interactions,” according to city council documents. 

Body camera footage is uploaded to Evidence.com, Axon’s cloud storage. Officers also use the site to upload photos and videos captured in the field.

To learn more about the above city council agenda item, click here to be directed to the city’s agenda portal.