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West Hennepin PD rolls out gun-mounted cameras

The West Hennepin Police Department is the second department in Minnesota to implement Viridian Weapon Technologies' gun-mounted cameras. The gun cameras record automatically when the gun is removed from the holster, and is designed to capture interactions involving deadly weapons.

INDEPENDENCE, Minn. - With 10 full-time police officers and eight volunteer reserve officers, it's fair to say the West Hennepin Police Department is on the smaller side.

However, on Thursday, Police Chief Gary Kroells showed that small doesn't necessarily mean technologically behind by rolling out gun-mounted cameras.

"We felt that a weapon-mounted camera best served our needs for our department," Kroells said. "To capture the low frequency, high-risk event involving the use of a firearm."

The camera is mounted below the barrel and automatically starts rolling as soon as the gun is removed from the holster. The result is crystal-clear HD video and audio.

The cameras are manufactured by a Maple Plains company called Viridian Weapon Technologies. Maple Plains also happens to be one of the two cities that West Hennepin PD serves.

Founder of Viridian Brian Hedeen says the system allows them to solely focus on footage that involves a deadly weapon.

"Body cams and dash cams were not specifically designed to capture officer-involved shootings," Hedeen explained.

Because the camera on the gun isn't constantly on and rolling, the system allows for smaller departments like West Hennepin to easily manage the footage they gather.

"We just don't have the manpower or the facilities to collect all of that information and store it," Sgt. Rick Dennison said. "But these are the most important incidences that we want to record and keep for our department."

West Hennepin PD already utilizes squad car dash cams and audio recorders on its police officers. The Viridian gun cameras would be used in addition to the other two options.

The total cost of the project was $7,200. Chief Kroells says it would have cost $40,000 to equip all of his officers with body cameras and purchase storage for all the footage the cameras would have gathered.

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