Minn. sheriff wants to expedite ‘groundbreaking’ plan for body camera use
By: Shannon Prather, Star Tribune
RAMSEY COUNTY, Minn. — Ramsey County Sheriff Bob Fletcher wants nearly all of his 400 deputies and corrections officers to wear body cameras, and he hopes to start rolling out the program by late summer.
Fletcher said Tuesday that he was moving swiftly after the recent release of a 2016 video showing a Ramsey County corrections officer punching and kneeing a handcuffed suspect while others watched. The officer has since pleaded guilty and resigned.
This “is about transparency, accountability and a chance to build trust in the community,” Fletcher told the Ramsey County Board, at times referencing the police shootings of St. Paul school nutrition supervisor Philando Castile and Justine Ruszczyk Damond of Minneapolis.
