Residents and employees recall the blaze that engulfed its refuse garage, located at 538 Hill Creek Drive, destroying its former garbage and recycling trucks that provided commercial and residential services, and eliminated its former curbside program for a period of time.

While this memory is certainly a steady one in the minds of many, five new refuse and collection garbage trucks will not only help the city move on from the incident, but also offer a more improved and efficient recycling services system to the community.

On Dec. 12, the city launched three of its new recycling trucks – the first hybrid hydraulic garbage trucks in Ohio. But to those in attendance at the community event hosted at the City of Oberlin Service Complex/Garage, the heavy duty, Parker Hannifin RunWise vehicles are more than just trucks. They are markers of the city’s role as a sustainable leader in Lorain County.

City Council President Scott Broadwell explained the city ‘had to dig down’ and form multiple partnerships to ensure the trucks would be economically sound for the city so that the sustainable benefits to the community outweigh the costs.

Support from the multiple agencies involved solidified the city’s new assets.

‘It’s not just a truck,’ Broadwell said. ‘Everyone came together…it’s a real team effort.

Without those partners, we wouldn’t have done it.’

The city secured a $200,000 grant from the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency with the help of the Lorain County Solid Waste Management District to go toward the city’s new trucks and separated, curbside recycling program. A partnership with Oberlin College’s Green Edge Fund also garnered $30,000 from the organization toward the payment of the new trucks.

‘When (we) found out Oberlin lost six of their fire trucks as a result of a massive fire at the garage, we had to take immediate action,’ said Lorain County Commissioner Ted Kalo, who joined a group of about 50 residents and city council members who attended the launch to celebrate the city’s sustainability achievement.

Kalo commended the city’s ability to make key partnerships in the city, such as the Ohio EPA, after the fire to overcome their recycling struggles. ‘It’s that type of hardship that sometimes sets people on a new path and how they will do business differently,’ Kalo said.

Attendees of the event had the opportunity to test out and do ride-alongs in Oberlin’s new trucks, which have already hit the streets and begun their routes. The city provides commercial services for approximately 100 customers and also serves between 2,100 and 2,150 residences.

The trucks will also prove to benefit the community through energy efficiency and CO2 emissions, resulting in a cleaner environment and savings for taxpayer.

According to Ben Mather, vice president of Operations of the hydraulics group with Parker Hannifin, a typical refuse vehicle will use more than 8,600 gallons of fuel each year. The new hydraulic trucks will cut that fuel consumption in half. The trucks also capture 71 percent of the energy that would normally be used in braking. That saved energy will allow the trucks to run routes without having to use fuel.

‘So it’s a really significant impact and really a huge impact on the community,’ Mather noted.

‘Certainly the city of Oberlin recognizes the energy savings benefits of the Parker Hannifin hydraulic hybrid technology to powering the fleet, but also to make a significant contribution toward CO2 emissions.’

Mather added the use of one truck is equivalent to planting 1,500 trees, or taking 6.7 cars off the road.

‘So it’s not an insignificant greenhouse gas emissions contributor,’ he said.

The new recycling system comes in concert with the city’s current Climate Action and Zero Waste plans established over the past few years to limit energy waste and reduce climate impact.

Oberlin resident Cullen Naumoff, 30, said she believes the city’s new trucks greatly align with Oberlin’s sustainable goals, including its aims to save energy and reduce waste. The trucks are also unique in that they view recycling through a system lens, she added stepping up the city’s recycling program to a new level.

‘Often times, people think of recycling as a material efficiency point of view,’ Naumoff said.

‘It’s now incorporating energy into recycling lifestyle. Because we have more energy efficient transportation and logistics system, our recycling, by proxy, is almost more efficient.’

This systems view can make the longevity of Oberlin’s materials and natural resources more sustainable in the long run, she said.

‘Any time you can hit multiple birds with one stone, it’s more efficient. It helps you reach those goals faster and more efficiently.’

Christopher Germain, Environmental specialist for the Ohio EPA, remarked that Oberlin’s feat would not have been reachable alone, and that the hands of many played a part in the success.

‘It’s a very competitive (grant) process, but every penny we gave to these trucks is well spent, and we’re really thrilled to see the results of that,’ Germain said. ‘Oberlin is a shining example we point to in our success stories in these types of situations.’

Oberlin College student Julia Murphy, 19, who is also a member of the Green Edge Fund, explained students were just one of many groups who were distraught by the city’s loss of its recycling services once the February fire took them in its flames.

She said the city’s new trucks, however, will not only evolve the ways in which the city recycles, but continue to further its sustainability goals.

‘In terms of recycling, we don’t want to just recycle,’ she said. ‘We want our recycling to be as efficient as possible.’

Abby Pace, 28, of Beavercrest Drive in Lorain, was charged with driving left of center in connection with the incident.

According to Officer Robert Hargreaves, police received a call about a crash on 1850 West Erie Ave. just after 1 p.m. Police said Pace was driving a Mitsubishi Lancer westbound when she went left of center and struck an eastbound Mazda pickup truck driven by a male in his 40s. Pace’s vehicle then deflected off the truck and hit the driver’s side door of an eastbound Lincoln Sedan driven by a man in his 30s.

Police said Pace was transported by LifeCare to Mercy Hospital and later flown by medical helicopter to MetroHealth Medical Center in Cleveland with a possible head injury. Jonah Rosenblum, media relations assistant for the hospital, said Pace was in fair condition as of Dec. 12.

The woman had two toddlers restrained in the back seat during the crash and they were transported by LifeCare to Mercy Hospital. The Mazda and Sedan drivers were the only occupants in their respective vehicles and were also transported by LifeCare to Mercy Hospital. Conditions of these individuals are unknown at this time, Hargreaves said.

Witnesses who were driving westbound at the time of the incident told police they observed Pace’s car abruptly travel left of center. Hargreaves said police believe Pace was distracted by something inside the vehicle that caused her to swerve.

Hargreaves added there is no evidence at this time that drugs or alcohol are factors of the crash. The incident is under investigation.

A call came in to dispatch at around 7:30 p.m. from a woman who stated she saw a male wearing dark clothing on the bridge on Lake Avenue, located at the west branch of the river, according to Elyria fire Capt. Jamison Norris. The woman said she looked away from the bridge briefly and upon looking back, the individual was gone. She did not witness the man jump or fall, authorities said.

The fall would’ve been about 75 feet, Elyria Fire Lt. Rick Thrasher said.

Responding agencies included the Lorain County Swift Water Rescue Team and Elyria Fire Department Swift Water Rescue Team, Homeland Security, Avon Fire Department, LifeCare and the Elyria Police Department.

Three two-man groups of firefighters suited up in diving suits at about 8 p.m. and scoured all shores and banks of the river on foot to locate the potential victim in the case that he was alive.

The search concluded around 9:20 p.m., and authorities confirmed no living or deceased individual was found. Crews ultimately decided to not launch their rafts for a dive search in the river. Thrasher explained if there was an individual in the water, he would have been there for at least an hour and a half since the reported fall, and would’ve most likely already died.

The speed, depth and flow of the river, as well as the safety of authorities searching in the dark and icy areas, were factors that ultimately prompted authorities’ decision to call off the search for the night and not commit further resources at that time, he added.

‘I don’t want to see anyone get hurt for no benefit,’ Thrasher said.

Authorities also determined that if there was a man in the water, the river’s flows were limited and he would not have made it to the confluence as they did not see more than 2 feet of water in the search.

Authorities said the search and decision to end it for the night was difficult in that the information provided by the initial caller was very vague as she did not have additional information on the potential victim. Authorities interviewed customers at Shop Way, 175 Lake Avenue, near the bridge but were unable to gather eye witnesses or any further details, Thrasher noted.

Thrasher said he would work with Elyria Fire Chief Rich Benton to determine a course of action for the morning of Dec. 12 in regards to a continued search of the river for a possible body, which he said would most likely take place sometime in the morning or afternoon.

According to police Officer Robert Hargreaves, the cased has been reviewed by the prosecutor’s office, and it has been determined that driver Sean Thompson, 21, is charged with driving under suspension and failure to control. The crash occurred around 3:18 p.m. when Thompson was driving a Chevy pickup truck westbound on West 21st Street. Police said the man suffered a seizure while driving and his body locked up, causing him to slam on the gas pedal and excel at a rapid pace. The driver travelled left of center off the roadway and crashed into a home on the 1700 block of West 21st Street.

The impact caused extensive damage to the home, and Ohio Edison and Columbia Gas ersponded to shut off the home’s electric and gas lines.

Police said Thompson catapulted forward face-first into the windshield. He was not wearing a seatbelt.

Thompson was flown by medical helicopter to MetroHealth Medical Center in Cleveland with life-threatening injuries, including internal injuries and outer wounds to his upper torso. He is currently in fair condition at the hospital, a nurse supervisor said Dec. 11.

A 17-year-old male passenger who was in the vehicle at the time of the incident and also wasn’t wearing his seatbelt, was transported to Mercy Hospital by LifeCare for a broken leg and minor cuts and bruises. The homeowner was at the residence at the time of the crash, however was not injured. Hargreaves said Thompson will appear in Lorain Municipal Court in January.

Additional charges are pending, police said.

Former police Sgt. Michael Failing will be promoted to lieutenant, and Detective Larry Swanger will become a sergeant in the road patrol division.

Failing, 42, who was first hired by the Lorain Police Department in 1994 as a corrections officer in the city jail, later worked as a resource officer at Lorain City Schools and then worked his way up to sergeant in 2009. In this role, he’s served as the department’s crime analyst investigating burglaries and mapping crimes in the city – a position that did not exist prior to Failing’s shift to that role.

Failing reminisced on days prior to joining the department at the ripe age of 21, citing he’d always been interested in the law enforcement field. But he never imagined he’d one day see ‘Lieutenant’ etched on his badge.

‘You see the cops growing up, you think that’s a really neat thing,’ Failing said. ‘I’ve always been interested in helping people.’

Prior to the role change, Failing was often working with Chief Cel Rivera and Capt. Roger Watkins on setting up new programs to combat crime, including the CrimeStat reports program or the recent Operation iDent initiative.

Soon, he will be on the opposite end, leading a group of nine road officers who put his initiatives to practice.

‘Now, I’ll be on the other side,’ he said. ‘I’ll be the one that gets to go out and handle that. … I’ll be able to enact it and control it on my shift, and actually see it through.’

Watkins said he believes Failing will be able to carry over his ‘well-rounded’ and diverse knowledge, whether it’s from his experience as a jailor or an intelligence-led crime analyst, to the position to benefit the department.

‘His efforts have changed the way the Police Department has organized itself to combat crime and address community issues,’ Watkins noted. ‘So, I think how well-rounded he’s become in his career in law enforcement is only going to benefit the officers beneath him.’

Similar sentiments were said of colleague Swanger, 45, who will soon serve as a patrol unit sergeant overseeing his own group of 8-9 road officers.

Sgt. Mark McCoy said he has supervised Swanger for three years in the newly promoted officer’s former role, and explained Swanger is a dedicated and reliable servant.

Of Swanger’s work, McCoy remarked, ‘You can pretty much count on it getting done.’

‘He was a good team member and I hate to see him go,’ McCoy said. ‘But I think he’ll go forward and do some good things in the patrol division.’

Similar to Failing, Swanger started with the department in 1994 with a passion for law enforcement, working the roads and later becoming a basic evidence technician for crime scenes. In March 2013, he moved up to the detective division.

‘I pretty much knew, probably since the age of 5, that I was interested in that type of stuff,’ Swanger said of law enforcement. Swanger was in active military in 1987 and began his law enforcement career in 1993 as a corrections officer at the Grafton Correctional Institute before Lorain hired him a year later.

In his former role as detective, Swanger explained he enjoyed assisting in and processing evidence – tasks he’ll miss once he completely transfers to his new role.

‘I like doing casework,’ he said. ‘Being able to take a police report with no evidence, and backtracking that case to talking to witnesses … watching it go through the process – to me – was very satisfying.’

However, he said he’s excited for his primary function to be supervision, ensuring the patrolmen under his wing are efficiently and successfully performing their duties.

‘It’s a chance to give back,’ Swanger said. ‘We have a lot of young officers on the team. It’s always nice to be able to bring them up a bit.’

Failing and Swanger are currently in the midst of making the transition from their former roles and will officially move into their new positions in late December.

Police responded to Stonehedge Drive, near the North Olmsted city line, after a resident reported seeing the passenger of a black, four-door Cadillac steal a package off a neighbor’s porch about 12:05 p.m., according to a press release from Westlake police.

A North Olmsted police officer also responded and stopped the Cadillac on Walter Road. Westlake police arrested both occupants, Jamir Johnson, 22, and Hermon Toney, 28. Police said they recovered several packages from the car that had allegedly been stolen from two homes on Stonehedge.

According to police, Johnson had an active warrant from Cuyahoga County Sheriff’s Office and now faces Westlake charges of two counts of theft and three counts of possession of criminal tools for having knives, gloves and cell phones. He also is facing a charge of carrying various weapons – a stun gun, a charge of illegal conveyance of bringing marijuana into jail, two counts of criminal trespass, possession of marijuana and illegal possession/abuse of food stamps for possessing another individual’s Ohio Direction card.

Toney is facing two counts of theft, three counts of possession of criminal tools and carrying various weapons. Police said Toney was previously convicted of robbery with a gun, attempted burglary and a probation violation.

Both are being held in Westlake City jail on $25,000 bond each awaiting a Dec. 14 appearance in Rocky River Municipal Court, Capt. Guy Turner said.

The U.S. Postal Inspection Service also will investigate the incidents, police said.

Elyria resident Lisa Dennis, 33, said she was at work when she received a text just before 6 p.m. from her ex-boyfriend Jason DeWitt, 36, that his back door was open and one of their dogs was missing from his Lorain home on the 1800 block of East 34th Street. DeWitt said he locked and double-checked the door prior to leaving his home that morning. When Dennis got to DeWitt’s home to help search for the dog, she and DeWitt, who is the father of their 8-year-old-daughter Alissa, found that $1,000 in cash and a handful of electronics, including a PlayStation 3, a Nintendo Wii and a tablet, were stolen from the home.

DeWitt said he was saving money from his job delivering car parts to pay for rent and buy Christmas gifts. They were hoping they, along with their daughter and Dennis’ 11-year-old son, James, could use the savings to celebrate the holidays together, Dennis said.

‘Right now, we don’t know what to do; it’s a shame,’ she said. ‘We don’t make much money, and so that’s why we’ve decided to do Christmas together (this year).’

Worst of all, she said, the pair found their two dogs ‘beaten up’ in the home, a Lorain police report confirmed. Dennis said Bizzy, a boxer Dalmatian mix who has cancer and ‘doesn’t have much time left,’ was found very badly swollen in DeWitt’s bedroom.

‘They beat him up pretty decent, so he was scared and hiding,’ DeWitt said of the dog, which he’s had for about 10 years since Bizzy was a puppy. ‘It broke my heart. They’re part of the family. I felt kind of crappy (that) I wasn’t there to protect them. It wasn’t a good feeling.’

Their pit bull mix Isabelle was also found on the couch with a swollen face, and the family says the suspect rifled through the ashes of a family dog that died 11 years ago.

‘That is very gut-wrenching,’ Dennis said. ‘It sickens us.’

Dennis said the dogs, which were both rescues, are family.

‘Items can be replaced, but not your family members,’ she said.

Jewelry also was stolen from the home, including DeWitt’s engagement ring from his prior relationship with Dennis, as well as a gold plated ring given to him by his grandfather before he died in April.

‘My grandfather just passed away the day before Easter,’ he said. ‘It was sentimental because he just passed away.’

A Lorain police report filed on the incident said police responded to the home before 7 p.m. and met with DeWitt, who said he left his house at about 8:15 a.m. for a doctor’s appointment and then went to work. There, he received a call from his mother Debbie DeWitt, 56, who lives in the same duplex, and said she saw the back door of his home was wide open and that she couldn’t find one of his dogs.

At the scene, police noticed a crow bar in the back yard near where the home’s fence was broken. Police seized the crowbar, which DeWitt said was not his, to test for evidence in case a suspect who used the tool to break in is apprehended.

DeWitt and Dennis’ 8-year-old daughter told police she saw a younger Hispanic male who appeared to be a teenager break the fence between 1 p.m. and 2 p.m. Dec. 7. She said the male was wearing a blue, short-sleeved T-shirt and blue jeans. She also said she saw him put a box in the alley on the other side of the fence to the rear of the home.

Police searched the area but did not find a suspect or stolen property at that time, the report said.

Police Lt. Michael Failing said the city of Lorain has experienced a rash of burglaries and breaking and entering incidents over the past few weeks in central Lorain, as well as a few blocks away from Lorain High School in south Lorain. He said these incidents are expected with the holidays nearing.

‘It’s always a tough time,’ Failing said.

The investigation into the burglary that occurred at DeWitt’s home is active, he said.

Dennis noted that the health of their pets has thankfully improved since the incident. The family said they have no bad ties to any neighbors and are unsure of who is responsible.

However, they hope the suspect will be caught and that their situation can help spread awareness about burglaries in the area and help other families.

‘We just want whoever did this to be caught because who would do this, especially to pets?’ Dennis said. ‘We just want whoever did this caught.’

Anyone with information on this incident can call Lorain police at 440-204-2100.

According to police Lt. William Pelko, the incident occurred around 9:45 p.m. in a driveway in the 800 block of Allen Street, where a 23-year-old Elyria man was waiting in a car with another male while their friend was in the residence.

Two black men, described as being in their early 20s and wearing dark clothing, allegedly approached the vehicle on foot, pulled the 23-year-old out of the car and began assaulting him, Pelko said. One of the suspects then pulled a gun out, and police believe the 23-year-old reached for the firearm in an attempt to defend himself when the gun went off and struck him in his left hand.

The suspects fled after the incident.

The victim was transported to University Hospitals Elyria Medical Center and was then taken by ambulance to University Hospitals in Cleveland with non-life threatening injuries, Pelko said. He added the man was expected to be released from the hospital Dec. 10.

Pelko said neither the victim nor his friends live at the residence where the incident occurred, and police are still investigating.

Anyone with information on this incident or the alleged suspects, can call Elyria police at 440-323-3302.

LaRiccia, 18, a senior says the opportunity has since impacted her education.

The event took place from Oct. 18-20 in Des Moines, Iowa, as part of the Borlaug Dialogue International Symposium, which serves as a platform to discuss world hunger and food security, and how quality and global access to food can be improved.

As part of the three-day event, 160 high school students – selected from 23 states and territories, and six countries – heard speeches by global leaders on hunger relief. They also presented their research and talked with students and teachers.

LaRiccia was one of the students who had the chance to leave her footprint.

Students were chosen based on submitted papers regarding global food security issues in developing countries. At the event, LaRiccia presented her paper that proposed a hypothetical implementation of a new rice crop containing a flood – and drought – resistant gene to help solve the issue of natural disasters destroying rice crops in the Philippines. Riccia wrote the paper her sophomore year as part of an English class assignment.

Prior to this, she attended many Ohio Model United Nations conferences in Columbus due to her interest in world issues. But it wasn’t until she wrote her essay when she began thinking about the impact hunger has on many nations.

‘I had no idea I’d be selected because I thought my knowledge (on agriculture) was so limited,’ she said. ‘I wasn’t expecting it at all.’

This is the fourth year Oberlin High School was represented at the Borlaug Dialogue International Symposium, and Superintendent John Schroth expressed his pride in LaRiccia’s work.

‘We’re very proud of her and the work that she’s done,’ Schroth said. ‘From a national standpoint, it’s a pretty prestigious honor. And to have a student at this caliber (who is) able to look at real world problems and local issues in a sociological way is just amazing.’

LaRiccia and the other students also toured research and industrial facilities, assisted with packaging meals for an Iowa-based hunger-fighting organization and participated in an Oxfam Hunger banquet.

Although she was nervous in the same room as prominent individuals leading the fight against hunger, LaRiccia found her place and walked away with a great deal of knowledge.

‘I felt kind of out of place at first, but remembered I deserved to be there just as anyone else,’ she said. ‘It was amazing. I felt like I was completely honored to go there.’

The events also helped LaRiccia debunk her misconceptions about hunger. She said she used to think there was insufficient food in the world to feed growing populations, but now believes the accessibility to that food is what needs more attention to spur change.

‘My view on hunger was misconstrued,’ she said. ‘It’s not that we have a shortage of food; it’s a bunch of different aspects that go into it.’

After she graduates from Oberlin in the spring, LaRiccia hopes to study journalism or international relations so she can help others.

‘I can take what I got from my experiences and actually apply it to real life situations,’ she said.

Thus far, some say the technology has proven to be beneficial.

For South Euclid Police, the benefits of the body cameras became evident shortly after officers started wearing them.

On Oct. 18 two officers responded to a home to find a man using a knife to attack a woman.

When the man ignored commands from the officer to drop the weapon, Patrolman Steve Wilson fired two shots, hitting and killing 44-year-old suspect Ronnie D. McNary.

Wilson had just been outfitted with a body camera that day, and the incident was captured on the device. That piece of evidence will play a large role as the case is reviewed by the Cuyahoga County Prosecutor’s Office, said South Euclid police Chief Kevin Nietert.

In the weeks since the shooting, nearly all road officers have been trained and are using the cameras. The department bought 35 cameras for a total of $24,000.

The department has found many benefits to the devices, including a few that were not anticipated, Nietert said.

While the devices are video cameras, they can also be used as still cameras. Officers have taken many more pictures during their daily police work such as something as relatively simple as taking a picture of a car parked illegally in a handicap spot, the chief said.

This photographic evidence then helped solve differences between the officer’s account and a citizen’s, Nietert said.

As the cameras cannot run 24/7 because of battery limitations, officers do still need to turn the devices on. This has been one of the program’s growing pains as some officers have failed to turn on the cameras at times, but those issues have been solved by verbal warnings or, at worst, a written warning, Nietert said.

The department also had to create a retention policy for the videos, which are saved on a multi-terabyte hard drive. Videos are stored for 90 days unless they are requested and have legal or administrative value. The department believes 90 days is a happy medium between giving the public ample time to file a complaint without eating up storage space with unnecessary videos, Nietert said.

In Willoughby, a few of the police department’s school resource officers have been using the body cameras for a little more than a year.

Detective Lt. James Schultz said the body cameras are a significant investment, so using them in the schools has served as a productive way to test them out.

‘We like what we’ve seen so far,’ Schultz said. ‘It gives a great view of 130 degrees in front of the officer.’

When officers and citizens know they are being recorded, they will more often act appropriately, he said.

‘Just the camera being there, that changes behavior sometimes,’ Schultz said.

Ptl. Chuck Popik, the school resource officer at South High School in Willoughby, said the camera has not changed the way he does his job, but can act as an easy way to settle he-said-she-said type disputes.

The cameras, which cost about $300 to $500 each, turn on with a quick and easy three taps of a button on his belt, Popik said.

Schultz said he thinks the department will eventually expand the program, but outfitting about 25 officers will prove to be quite an expense.

While those that have bought the devices have found benefits, not all departments have jumped at the chance to purchase body cameras.

The Lake County Sheriff’s Office does not have any plans to start using body cameras. The department also does not use dashboard cameras in its cruisers, Sheriff Daniel Dunlap said.

The body cameras are an expensive investment, and Dunlap said the lack of cameras have not generated any problems or complaints from the public.

‘Without body cameras, there’s a very good chance you’re being filmed anyway,’ said Dunlap, citing smart phones and surveillance cameras as being now almost omnipresent.

Some Lorain County police departments also are in the midst of exploring and utilizing body cameras to not only assist them in their roles, but provide a third-party perspective in officer-resident interactions.

Wellington police Sgt. Jeff Shelton said the police department has had dash cams in its cruisers, however these devices can’t capture what happens when officers leave their cars to handle an incident. This called for the need for new technology, he said.

‘The problem is once we pull up to the scene and our officers either go into a house or business, you don’t have camera footage anywhere,’ Shelton said. ‘So at least this way, you’re going to be able to see what the officer sees in the house.’

The department began having discussions on body cams in August in an effort to create what he described as a safer environment for officers and the public. The department has since ordered 18 cameras, featuring visual and audio capture capabilities for up to four continuous hours, for use by each of its officers. As soon as it receives the storage facility hardware, the department will put officers out on the road with the cams this month.

Shelton hopes the cameras can hold officers and citizens accountable for their interactions in the case that something questionable occurs.

‘This way is just a little bit more of a safety net for the public and police officers,’ he said. ‘We’re not trying to get either party in trouble. It puts them on an even playing ground.’

Because body cams can be beneficial to the safety of both officers and citizens, Shelton said this makes the technology a ‘double edge sword.’

‘It’s going to protect both (parties), but (you’re) going to find bad parts of both also, so you’re really going to be on your toes,’ he said.

Newly appointed Wellington police Chief Tim Barfield explained he mostly saw benefits from the use of body cams in his former position at Maple Heights Police Department, which he said utilized the footage to gather evidence and confirm facts regarding citizen complaints.

Although it has not been the case in every situation, he said the majority of the time citizens learned their perceptions of incidents were different than what actually occurred after police reviewed footage of officer-civilian interactions.

‘My experience is that the video will end up justifying and exonerating policemen of complaints that do come in. Most of the time, police were doing what they had to do,’ Barfield said.

‘… It’s a sad point in time when a police’s word isn’t good enough,’ he said. ‘But that’s OK because we can work with the technology.’

He recognized if a police officer is in the wrong, he believes they should be held accountable, and the footage captured on these cameras can help back citizen claims.

‘There were times officers were disciplined from what we saw,’ Barfield said if his former place of work. ‘If the citizens are right and the policemen are wrong, I’ll correct that. I’ll promise you this, if a policeman acts inappropriately, we’ll take action.’

He said the cameras do have their limitations as they don’t necessarily take all facts and factors into account on the scene.

‘The camera only records what’s really going on, it doesn’t record perspective,’ he said. ‘If we are called into question, hopefully the evidence will play in the department’s favor.’

Officials of one police department that recently employed the body cams department-wide say they are beginning to feel comfortable with – and see benefits of – the new technology. Oberlin police Lt. Mike McCloskey said there was some initial skepticism from officers when the cameras were first implemented in early November. For instance, there were incidents where officers forgot to turn their cameras on or off.

However since then, and despite the learning curve, McCloskey said officers have become accustomed to the technology and consider it to be reliable.

‘I think officers have accepted it and have started to take to it as a tool to help them in their jobs,’ McCloskey said. ‘We’ve seen nothing but benefits from it.’

He said most of the 339 files that have come back from the cameras since November have been ‘basic mundane footage’ of routine traffic stops. McCloskey said the police department has not had any incidents in regards to complaints against officers or any other critical incidents that necessitated in-depth review.

By the same token, McCloskey said the footage has proven to be of evidentiary value for court purposes in regards to conversations between police and civilians.

Oberlin police Sgt. Patrick Durica admitted he was a bit hesitant about using his camera in the beginning, but his mindset has changed with time.

‘Like most officers, I was a little resistant to the idea at first – just a feeling that we need to be watched or monitored,’ Durica said. ‘But we’ve had a few instances I’ve been involved in … (where) it was a good piece of mind to have the equipment. That way, it’s not my word versus the defendant’s word.’

Durica and McCloskey cited a recent example of this interaction. In November, police were called to Mercy Allen Hospital about an intoxicated college student who allegedly assaulted hospital staff. When police attempted to arrest the male, he broke free of officers, attempted to run and sustained a facial injury in the process.

‘That’s the kind of situation where you have someone who’s intoxicated and could possible come back and explain that the police department acted inappropriately,’ McCloskey said.

‘Being able to go back and review video shows clearly their injury was caused by their own doing. Officers on scene all had body cams; we had at least two perspectives of the same incident.’

McCloskey said he believes at a time where the public’s question of police’s actions continues to grow, these devices could serve as an impartial third party.

‘I think times are definitely changing, and I think body-worn cameras for police are becoming a trend in law enforcement, particularly after these highly public incidents,’ he said of the recent fatal police shootings. ‘I think it will, in the long run, enhance public trust of police and be a benefit.’

Fostering that trust with the public and enhancing community partnerships, he added, is an integral part of the department’s mission.

‘The police department is part of the community we serve, and we have to work together to make the community safe and trust is a big part of that,’ he said. ‘And these cameras create a feeling of transparency that we’re not out to hide anything.’