By Claire Drewniak
In the run-up to Thanksgiving, Gov. Phil Murphy signed measures requiring the use of body cameras by police, and discussed plans for distributing COVID vaccines as they become available.
Mandating body cameras for law enforcement should “ensure that there is an impartial record of the facts that can be used in investigations, in our courts, or to provide the best possible training for our police,” Murphy said at Tuesday’s virtual signing.
Advocates said this technology is crucial now, in the wake of George Floyd’s killing.
“We are in the midst of a national reckoning for racial justice, a reckoning that has highlighted many issues and concerns when it comes to policing,” said state Attorney General Gurbir Grewal.
“So it’s therefore incumbent upon those of us in law enforcement to not only acknowledge this reality, but also to commit ourselves to addressing it,” Grewal said.
Murphy signed two bills. One mandates that almost all cops wear body cams. The other outlines exceptions when cameras may be switched off, and how videos must be stored. Both measures take effect in seven months. Murphy also signed an executive order creating a committee to recommend the best technology.
Morristown police have worn body cameras since 2015, and Morris Township’s department began deploying them last year.
Most police departments still don’t have body cams, however, and the state legislature is hashing out funding issues.
VACCINES
In an interview this week with MSNBC, the governor fielded questions about the rollout for promising COVID-19 vaccines on the fast track for federal approvals.
“We’re likely to get first batches [of the vaccine] in December, and we’ve got a whole set of protocols, in terms of who gets them first. Not surprisingly it will be frontline workers and vulnerable populations.”
Murphy said he anticipates several hundred thousand batches from Pfizer and Moderna, if both companies get emergency use authorization.
Questions about how the vaccines will be delivered are being ironed out, he said.
“I do believe you will see mass drop-shipping to drug store chains, including independent pharmacies,” said Murphy, who expects details will be resolved over the next few weeks.
His optimism about the vaccines is tempered by doses of reality.
“We have a bunch of holidays stacked up. There’s light at the end of the tunnel, but we’re likely in for a very rough two or three months,” Murphy told MSNBC.
