- Rollout of body-worn cameras at men's and women's prisons begins in October
- Devices increase transparency and accountability by capturing evidence of incidents
- Move follows introduction of technology at youth detention facilities, other jurisdictions
- Cook Labor Government building safer communities
Prison Officers at maximum security prisons will begin wearing body-worn cameras from next month under a $4.2 million rollout of the technology.
The Department of Justice will be deploying more than 500 of the cameras across Casuarina, Hakea, Bandyup, Melaleuca, and Albany prisons.
The move follows the successful introduction of the Axon Body 4 cameras for Youth Custodial Officers at youth detention centres in 2024.
The technology will complement CCTV coverage in prisons by capturing vision and audio of incidents.
It enables officers to record and securely manage digital evidence through an integrated system.
Use of the cameras is expected to enhance staff and prisoner safety, incident management, and operational accountability.
The phasing in of the technology aligns Western Australia with correctional services in other Australian jurisdictions and New Zealand.
The rollout begins at Casuarina and Hakea prisons in October before progressing to the other prisons.
As stated by Corrective Services Minister Dr Tony Buti:
"The Cook Labor Government is investing in the latest body worn camera technology to support safer and more secure custodial environments in Western Australia.
"The cameras' use will make interactions between officers and prisoners more transparent and enable more effective reviews of incidents.
"The evidence collected by these devices is expected to reduce assaults on staff.
"It's one more tool available to help make our prisons more secure and allow staff to focus on rehabilitating prisoners to enhance community safety."
