Obama Requests $263 Million For 50,000 Police Body Cameras And Additional Training After Ferguson Unrest

HNGN.com | December 2, 2014

In response to the Ferguson protests and police reaction, President Barack Obama proposed on Monday new funding designed to help improve relations between police departments and the minority communities they are supposed to protect and serve.

The $263 million requested by the White House would largely go toward equipping police around the country with body cameras and better training them with military equipment, reported NBC News.

If congressional approval is granted, the program will dedicate $75 million over three years, match 50 percent of state funding, and will help pay for more than 50,000 cameras.

"This is not a problem just of Ferguson, Missouri. This is a national problem," Obama said, adding that the program hopes to curb the "simmering level" of distrust between police officers and communities around the nation.

Major changes won't be made to the military equipment transfer program that sends equipment to state and local law enforcement agencies, the White House said. Instead, the administration will attempt to focus on more effective oversight, transparency and training to ensure the military equipment is adequately used, NBC reported.

Obama clarified that he wants to make sure that the U.S. is not turning its police forces into a "militarized culture."

Source: http://www.hngn.com/articles/51456/20141202/obama-requests-263-million-for-50-000-police-body-cameras-additional-training.htm#ixzz3L3fX37PC