{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["http://cartwright.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/cartwright-announces-grant-awarded-to-the-city-of-scranton-for-police-0", "Cartwright Announces Grant Awarded to the City of Scranton for Police Body Cameras", "2016-09-26", "2016", "2016-09", "Democrat", "House", "PA", "Matt Cartwright", "C001090", "cartwright.house.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Scranton, PA \u2013 Today, Congressman Matt Cartwright announced that the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has awarded a grant in the amount of $94,268 to the City of Scranton through the Office of Justice Programs\u2019 Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) program.\u00a0 The funds will be used to purchase body-worn cameras for the Scranton Police Department.\u00a0\n\u201cThrough this award, the Scranton Police Department will be able to improve community policing and make our neighborhoods safer,\u201d said Congressman Cartwright.\u00a0 \u201cToday\u2019s announcement by the Department of Justice provides another opportunity to increase trust between the police department and the community it serves.\u00a0 It\u2019s a good day when the people who help to keep our cities safe receive funding to do their jobs more effectively.\u201d\nThe awards are part of a nationwide program funded under the Office of Justice Programs\u2019 BJA Fiscal Year 2016 Body-Worn Camera Policy and Implementation Program.\u00a0 According to the DOJ\u2019s announcement, \u201cThe grants will help law enforcement organizations implement body-worn camera policies, practices, and evaluation methods to make a positive impact on the quality of policing in individual communities.\u201d\nThrough this grant program, BJA awarded more than $16 million to state and local law enforcement agencies, as well as a $3 million supplemental award to continue support for body-worn camera training and technical assistance.\nThe Body Worn Camera program was launched by the DOJ last year in response to a recommendation by the President\u2019s Task Force on 21st Century Policing that urged law enforcement agencies to use technology to strengthen relationships with communities.\u00a0 Initial research has shown that law enforcement use of body-worn camera programs improve law enforcement\u2019s interaction with the public and benefit law enforcement officers.\u00a0 Body-worn cameras provide a video of what the officer sees during any interaction with the public, and that video can be used to both corroborate written police reports and for other analytics.\u00a0 Furthermore, preliminary studies have shown that the use of body cameras leads to a reduction in both officer complaints and the use of force.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["http://cartwright.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/cartwright-announces-grant-awarded-to-the-city-of-scranton-for-police-0"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.4590052887797356, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}