UPDATE: Sioux County Deputies To Begin Using Body Worn Cameras

Soo Body Cams

Sioux County, Iowa — Earlier we told you that the Sioux County Sheriff’s Office is preparing to outfit their deputies with body cams to augment the department’s dash cams, and in-car cams that are outfitted in each of the deputy’s patrol vehicles.

We talked to Chief Deputy Nate Huizenga of the Sioux County Sheriff’s Office, and he said that with the improvement of technology, now was the time to join a growing number of other law enforcement agencies across the country, and outfit their officers with body cameras.

Huizenga says that the in-car cameras are great tools, but they have their limitations.

Another advantage of the body cameras, according to Huizenga, is the ability to substantiate everything the officer is seeing and hearing.

Huizenga says the Sioux County deputies are currently in the process of training with the new body cameras, which Huizenga described as about the size of a deck of cards, and once that training, along with training on the Sioux County Sheriff’s Office policies concerning body cams, is complete, the new devices should show up on Sioux County deputy’s uniforms, hopefully by the end of April.


Original story posted at 5:45 pm 3/16/17

Sioux County, Iowa — The Sioux County Sheriff’s Office is set to be one of the first law enforcement agencies in the area to employ new technology in their fight against crime.

According to Sioux County Sheriff Dan Altena, his deputies will soon begin using body worn cameras.

Sioux County Sheriff Dan Altena says that, after much research, his office purchased the body worn cameras for deputies.  Altena says they will synchronize with their patrol vehicle cameras that are already in use.  He says Sioux County Sheriff’s Office patrol vehicles currently have a camera that records video and audio from the front of the vehicle, and a camera that records video and audio inside the vehicle.  The Sheriff says the body worn cameras will record video and audio in those instances where the deputy is not in view of the patrol vehicle cameras.

Altena says the body worn camera units will be valuable for Sheriff’s Office transparency, evidence collection, aiding in complaints against deputies, and case prosecutions.

The Sheriff says his deputies are currently going through the training process pertaining to the use of the body worn cameras, as well as the Sheriff’s Office policy relating to the devices.  He says when that training is complete, the body worn cameras will be activated.

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