An online petition has been created to help bring transparency to citizens, law enforcement, and the courts, by mandating Montreal police to be equipped with body cams.
The change.org petition says the change is an “overwhelming need” and is sanctioning that functioning body cameras become required by “all on-duty officers” in the Service de police de la Ville de Montréal (SPVM), Sûreté du Québec, and “all other police agencies conducting services in Quebec.”
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The petition, which aims to get 75,000 signatures, also lobbies for any officer who performs their duty without the proper digital documentation, to face a hearing, external investigation, disciplinary actions, dismissal, or even jail time.
As of this writing, the petition has received 57,841 signatures.
Last week, the opposition party, Ensemble Montréal, said the time has come for Montreal police to be outfitted with body cams.
“We need police accountability and transparency,” said Mayor of Côte-des-Neiges — Notre-Dame-de-Grâce Sue Montgomery. She said the implementation of body cameras has been “disavowed ” by Montreal Mayor Valérie Plante in the past, who, according to Montgomery, says the equipment, training, and new software would be too pricey for the City to afford.
Ensemble Montréal’s proposed motion calls on SPVM officers to make a “firm commitment” to permanently outfit officers with body cams.
“The year is 2020 and technological innovation allows no excuses for police conduct to go unmonitored,” concludes the Mandatory Body Cameras For Montreal Police petition, citing that body cams would reduce police brutality by at least 60%.
The petition is asking Montrealers to sign, share, and support the cause and “needed changes.”
The petition can be found here.
Daily Hive reached out to the SPVM for a statement and has yet to receive a response.
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