LASD Deputies In Agoura Hills Preparing To Wear Body Cameras

AGOURA HILLS, CA — Some Los Angeles Sheriff's Department deputies will begin wearing body cameras in the field tonight, according to Sheriff Alex Villanueva. LASD held their first body-camera training class Thursday morning in preparation for their arrival.

The West Hollywood station will be one of the first to be fitted with cameras. According to Villanueva, deputies at the Century, Lancaster and Industry stations will also begin wearing cameras tonight.

In the subsequent rollout, deputies in Malibu, Calabasas and Aguora Hills will also begin wearing cameras. Villanueva expects to deploy 5,248 body cameras throughout the department over the next 18 months.

The department received their first shipment of cameras on September 2, after the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors transferred $25.5 million to LASD to fund the rollout. County Supervisor Janice Hahn, who co-authored the motion to fund the body cameras, expressed optimism that the cameras will help clear up misinformation around incidents between deputies and residents.

"Body-worn cameras are an important tool for transparency and I have been advocating to get them to our sheriff's deputies since Sheriff Jim McDonnell was in office," County Supervisor Janice Hahn said. "The videos these cameras capture will give us a clearer understanding of what actually happens in the interactions between our deputies and members of the public."

Calls for LASD deputies to wear body cameras have only intensified this year following more high profile police and deputy shootings. Last month, LASD deputies shot and killed Dijon Kizzee in Westmont after attempting to stop him for a bicycle violation.

The embattled department was also in the news after deputies killed 18 year old Andres Guardado by shooting him five times in the back. According to the manager of the auto shop where Guardado worked, LASD deputies destroyed nearby security cameras and took the DVR containing footage of the incident.

Some supervisors stressed that more must be done, and that the presence of cameras will not necessarily prevent violence. Hahn mentioned that along with cameras, "real accountability, real reform and real reflection" must be applied.

"These body-worn cameras, they don't solve everything, but they put a lot of things in perspective," Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas said.