St. Louis's top elected officials on Wednesday voted unanimously to equip city cops with body cameras.
The deal calls for a one-year trial using as many as 1,300 cameras furnished by Axon, the Arizona-based company formerly known as Taser International.
It was approved during a wild, crowded meeting of the Board of Estimate and Apportionment set against the backdrop of ongoing protests following Friday's announcement that ex-cop Jason Stockley had been found not guilty of murdering Anthony Lamar Smith in 2011.
Smith's mother was seated in the front row of the crowd of 120 to 150 people, as was Gina Torres, whose son, Isaiah Hammett, was killed by police in June during a raid on the family's home. The board's three members — Mayor Lyda Krewson, Comptroller Darlene Green and Board of Alderman President Lewis Reed — debated the issue for more than two hours, bickering with each other as well as audience members who demanded they approved body cameras today.
Reed brought the contract to the board, which signs off on the city's annual budget and approves appropriations of city funds.…