After an officer was almost injured by an exploding body camera overnight, the NYPD has shelved 3,000 cameras of the same model.
On early Sunday morning, a Staten Island officer working at 121 Precinct, who had just put on on a Vievu LE5 body camera, noticed the device was smoking from the bottom. He immediately took it off and within minutes the device exploded inside the precinct.
“It unexpectedly began to smoke and fell from his shirt to the ground,” where “it then caught fire and was damaged,” an official shared when discussing the scary incident.
Following the explosion, the NYPD has put out a warning to all surrounding precincts. Police Commissioner James O’Neill is recalling the body cameras that are used in 16 other locations.
Police body cameras defect may be due to battery
After examination, it appears the LE5 body cameras have defective batteries, causing the cameras to ignite and explode.
A NYPD spokeswoman has since issued a statement about the use of the dangerous body cameras.
“Nothing is more important than the safety of our officers, and equipping the NYPD with the best equipment is a paramount priority. All officers assigned LE-5 cameras were instructed to immediately remove the cameras and bring them back to their commands. The Department is in the process of collecting and removing the LE-5 cameras from the commands now.”
While the NYPD deals with the defective cameras, New York officers will wear and older version of the Vievu body cameras, the LE4.
NYPD Police Officer picked up his body camera during the midnight shift early Sunday at the 121 Precinct on Staten Island and noticed there was smoke coming from the bottom of it. The Police Officer took it off and the unit exploded. https://t.co/zvq4Xc46sQ
— NYC EMS Watch (@NYCEMSwatch) October 21, 2018
Currently, more than 15,000 body cameras are used out in the field to monitor the work of police officers around the state.
