PITTSFIELD, Mass. – Before the Pittsfield Police Department released its internal report clearing two officers of wrongdoing in the shooting death of Miguel Estrella, a citizens petition was presented to the Pittsfield City Council to require body cameras for the city’s police.

“They’re invaluable tools to know what really happened in a particular police encounter,” said Rinaldo Del Gallo, a local attorney who filed the petition. “And it’s not pro-police officer, it’s not pro-citizen, it’s pro-truth.” 

This isn’t the first time there’s been an effort to bring body cameras to the Pittsfield police, but Del Gallo hopes now there’s enough momentum to make a change.

“We’ve had a very big showing, and I think the need for it is really proven,” said Del Gallo. “It’s just all too often there’s no footage or there’s incomplete footage, and the body cam footage really helps.”

Several people spoke both in support and against the idea at Tuesday night’s city council meeting.

Pittsfield resident Dana Rasso, who has helped organize the community’s response to Estrella’s death, said body cameras aren’t the answer.

“We have a lot of data to look at,” said Rasso. “And when we look at that data, it overwhelmingly tells us that body worn cameras have negligible impact on the behavior of police.”

Instead, she wants the city to focus on reducing the amount of police interactions with the public and increasing funding for mental health resources.

“We take some of that funding away from the police budget and put it towards things like mental health counselors,” said Rasso. “First responders who are not equipped with weapons, who can go and address people with mental health crises.”

In a statement, Pittsfield Police Captain Gary Traversa said the department is interested in having body cameras, but issues surrounding privacy and funding concerns need to be sorted out before they are implemented.

The petition was referred to the city council’s ordinances and rules subcommittee for consideration.