By Hastings Star Gazette — Jan 25, 2022
Today, Rep. Angie Craig announced that the U.S. Department of Justice has awarded the Dakota County Sheriff’s Office with nearly $170,000 in grant funding as a part of the Department of Justice’s Body-Worn Camera Policy and Implementation Program.
The program, which Dakota County applied to in 2021 and representative Craig supported, provides funding to law enforcement agencies seeking to purchase body-worn cameras in the line of duty.
In Congress, Rep. Craig has made it a priority to ensure that local police departments have the funding they need to do their jobs safely and effectively.
As part of that effort, Rep. Craig worked closely with Sheriff Leslie and the County to advocate on behalf of Dakota County’s application since it was submitted last year.
In addition, just last week, Craig helped introduce bipartisan legislation to provide millions of dollars in additional funding for local police departments to invest in training, equipment, recruiting programs and other initiatives.
“The Dakota County Sheriff’s Office does critical work to keep our communities safe each and every day. I was proud to partner with Sheriff Leslie and his team throughout this application process – and to ensure they have the resources they need to do their jobs safely and effectively,” Craig said. “In Congress, I will continue working to ensure that Minnesota law enforcement agencies receive the support they deserve to continue reducing crime and protecting public safety.”
“These new body-worn cameras will allow for safer and more secure communities for everyone,” Leslie said. “I am very pleased that the Dakota County Sheriff’s office was selected to receive these additional federal funds and grateful to Representative Craig for all of her support throughout this application process.”
The goal of the Body-Worn Camera program is to trust and increase cooperation between the Dakota County Sheriff’s Office and community members by increasing the transparency of law enforcement and community interactions, holding officers to a high standard of BWC use compliance and conduct and using digital evidence to increase access to justice for all community members.