Police begin wearing cameras in US protest town

FERGUSON, United States — Members of the Ferguson Police Department wear body cameras during a rally in the town on the weekend. (PHOTO: AFP)

WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — Police in the US town of Ferguson, roiled by protests after the fatal shooting of an unarmed black teenager, are now wearing body cameras in a bid to calm local anger, a news report said.

More than 1,000 protesters again marched on the weekend in the town over the August 9 killing of Michael Brown, 18, at the hands of a white police officer.

Some in the St Louis suburb have also lashed out at the police response to the protests — which turned violent on several occasions — accusing authorities of unnecessarily heavy-handed tactics.

Ferguson police began wearing the cameras on Saturday, according to the St Louis Post-Dispatch, quoting the town’s police chief Tom Jackson as saying the force — which is overwhelmingly white — was donated about 50 body cameras by two companies.

“We are still playing with them,” Jackson reportedly said, adding that each officer will get one to use. “The quality is good,” he said.

Critics believe police will be more accountable if they wear cameras, which will also allow judges and juries to view for themselves police action in disputed incidents.

A grand jury is hearing evidence to determine whether police officer Darren Wilson, 28, used excessive force in fatally shooting Brown, who was hit at least six times.