The measure comes more than a month after a police involved shooting that left 25-year-old Andrew Hogan dead and three Trotwood officers were placed on administrative leave. However, the move to outfit officers with body cameras is not in response to the shooting; the purchase was in the works long before the incident, Mayor Mary McDonald said.
“The time of legislation happened coincidentally,” she said.
The council members voted unanimously for the resolution, saying body cameras are needed because the city recognizes the value of video evidence to both law enforcement personnel and citizens.
“In a recent poll our community has given the Trotwood Police Department at 94% approval rating. We are extremely proud of the trust,” McDonald said. “I believe the cameras are the best way possible to assure everyone of interest when there is a question relating to police-citizen interactions.”
Police were called on a Friday night in February to a shoplifting complaint to the Speedway gas station at 5010 Olive Road. The suspect left before police arrived and was headed west on Shiloh Springs Road. Officers found the suspect, later identified as Hogan, about a block away near Kensington Apartment Complex, according to a release from the department.
During a press conference, Trotwood Police Chief Erik Wilson said Hogan struck one of the officers during the incident and that officers used pepper spray on Hogan, who reportedly refused to follow orders before he ran to the 700 block of Kelford Place.
While waiting for additional units to respond, Hogan left an apartment with a knife in his hand and was fatally shot.
Since last year, the NAACP Dayton chapter has demanded police officers wear body cameras when responding to situations.
“We definitely think it’s a step in the right direction. That goes along with the eight point pan that we launched last year in 2020. We are still calling on other police departments throughout Montgomery County, Ohio to follow suit and do the same prior to something happening in their respective communities,” said Derrick Forward president of NAACP Dayton Unit. “We applaud the city of Trotwood for exercising leadership and taking quick decisive action to get the body cams in spite of financial concerns.”
Wilson didn’t respond to requests for comment.
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