Buffalo, N.Y. (WBEN) - Erie County Sheriff's deputies will now have body cameras on them as they work at the Erie County Holding Center in Downtown Buffalo, as well as the Erie County Correctional Facility in Alden.
Erie County Sheriff John Garcia says these body camera will increase transparency when it comes to potential incidents that may take place at both facilities.
175 bodycams have been deployed at the Holding Center, with 122 already in use at the Correctional Facility, according to the Sheriff's Office. Garcia says all deputies and corrections officers in a housing unit or post where they interact with an incarcerated individual or member of the public will wear them.
"There's nothing more important than a law enforcement officer's integrity," said Garcia in an interview with WBEN. "There's instances where something occurs and you can have three witnesses there, and they each have a different view of the incident."
Garcia adds the body cameras are a way to quickly remedy unjustified complaints.
"What that does is it reduces the hours that we spend investigating these cases, lawsuits that later our taxpayer dollars have to go to," Garcia noted.
The Erie County Holding Center was built in 1939. While it was built in a time where it's purpose was for people not to escape, Garcia admits there are still some blind spots in the facility. Now with the bodycams, they help cover those blind spots.
Garcia is grateful for the support of county lawmakers on both sides of the aisle for grants for the bodycams.