An Axon body-worn police camera. Courtesy photo

An Axon body-worn police camera. Courtesy photo

Auburn City Council approves contract for police body cameras, Tasers

The new equipment will cost over $2.2 million.

The Auburn City Council unanimously passed Resolution 5624, on Monday, Oct. 18, which allows Mayor Nancy Backus to enter into a contract to purchase body-worn cameras and new Tasers for the Auburn Police Department.

The city will use funds from the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) to pay for the new equipment, according to the resolution.

The contract is with Axon, one of the largest providers of body-worn cameras to police in the country and the creator of the Taser. The total cost of the new equipment will be over $2.2 million over the next 60 months, according to the contract.

In September, the council adopted a spending plan for the $14.8 million the city received in ARPA funds from the federal government. The funds are intended to help cities recover from the COVID-19 pandemic and mitigate the negative effects of the pandemic.

According to the resolution: “U.S. Treasury Department guidance indicates that expenditures toward law enforcement technology and equipment to more efficiently and effectively respond to increased gun violence during the pandemic can meet this stated ARPA purpose.”

The body cameras and new Tasers will allegedly allow Auburn police to more effectively and efficiently respond to gun violence through incident recording and “less lethal” incident response tools, according to the resolution.

In 2020, there were 209 instances in which a gun was used in a crime. In 2019, there were 153, and in 2018 there were 164, according to data from the Washington Association of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs.

Contrary to the claims made in the resolution, Seattle police officers have been equipped with body-worn cameras since 2017, yet there was still an increase in instances of guns used in crimes from 738 in 2019 to 1,004 in 2020.


Talk to us

Please share your story tips by emailing editor@kentreporter.com.

To share your opinion for publication, submit a letter through our website https://www.kentreporter.com/submit-letter/. Include your name, address and daytime phone number. (We’ll only publish your name and hometown.) Please keep letters to 300 words or less.

More in Northwest

t
Man, 19, dies in Auburn shooting

Officers found the man in the 1900 block of 22nd Way NE with a gunshot wound.

The suspects’ vehicle. Photo courtesy of the Renton Police Department.
Man dragged, shot, killed in Renton after holding onto car during theft

Police report there are at least two suspects who have not yet been identified.

t
Man shot and killed in Federal Way

A K9 search team was activated, but no suspect was located after Feb. 1 shooting

Maleng Regional Justice Center in Kent. FILE PHOTO
Federal Way man accused of killing teen with machete goes to trial

His defense claims there’s no evidence to show he was involved or ever present

A “no trespassing” sign outside of the Northwest ICE Processing Center in Tacoma. (Grace Deng/Washington State Standard)
Feds fly 110 detained migrants to Washington state, advocacy group says

Dozens of people sent to a detention center in Tacoma.

t
Congressman Adam Smith criticizes Trump for accusing DEI for plane crash

‘The president is not seeking to solve real problems by blaming DEI,’ Smith says

The four yellow parcels in the center of the image are where Portofino Investment plans to develop between 107 and 132 middle incoming housing units. Image courtesy King County Assessor
Up to 132 townhomes slated to be built on Lea Hill in Auburn

The properties are part of the area Auburn annexed from Kent in 2024

Courtesy Photo, King County
Man accused of killing his mother in Renton

‘I killed my mother,’ the suspect told police, according to court documents.

Students raise their hands to indicate that they participated in breakfast that morning during attendance. Each class tracks meals a different way, finding how best to seamlessly integrate it into their usual morning activities. Photo by Keelin Everly-Lang / the Mirror.
Breakfast in the Classroom program shines in Federal Way | Photos

United Way of King County presents award to Federal Way Public Schools for fighting student hunger

Employees work at Fall City’s Aroma Coffee Co. on Jan. 14, 2025. (Grace Gorenflo/Valley Record)
Small businesses brace for higher minimum wage in King County

New wage for unincorporated areas went into effect Jan. 1, but the rules are still being determined.

Leonel Gonzalez at his sentencing. Photo by Joshua Solorzano/Sound Publishing
Man sentenced to 39 years for fatal carjacking at Federal Way Crossings

The mother of the victim in 2021 shooting told the man that she forgives him

Looking out over Cell 8 during the fall 2024 public tour of the Cedar Hills Regional Landfill. Photo by Bailey Jo Josie/Sound Publishing.
Where will all the waste go? King County’s only landfill expected to be completely full by 2040

Cedar Hills Regional Landfill receives about 1 million tons of waste a year.