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Funds For Police Dashboard Cameras Should Not Be Removed

Chautauqua County legislators may want to re-think their decision to cut $50,000 for dashboard cameras from Chautauqua County Sheriff Joe Gerace’s 2017 budget proposal.

Commend legislators for looking for ways to further cut spending from the county budget, a plan which lowered the county tax rate but came with a tax levy increase. One of the areas legislators chose to focus on to cut spending was $50,000 of the $150,000 for dashboard cameras for the Sheriff’s Department that had been included in County Executive Vince Horrigan’s 2017 proposed budget. Legislators did approve $100,000 in the budget that Gerace will use to purchase as many dashboard cameras as he can.

We wonder if it is wise, however, not to have Sheriff’s Department vehicles outfitted with dashboard cameras. Gerace mentioned to lawmakers two pending lawsuits that would likely have been dismissed already if the county had dashboard cameras. They could also provide proof of misbehavior against county residents.

Either side of that coin is enough reason for legislators to consider outfitting the rest of the department’s vehicle if money becomes available. It is well worth the cost to protect the county from lawsuits and provide proof of any abuses.

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