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Mayor Eric Garcetti announced Tuesday that the city would purchase 7,000 body cameras for police officers in an effort to increase transparency.

Sgt. Dan Gomez of the LAPD Tactical Technology Section wears the new TASER Axon on-body cameras meant for police officers during a Dec. 16, 2014, press conference where Mayor Eric Garcetti announced that the city would purchase cameras in an effort to increase transparency. (Credit: Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times)
Sgt. Dan Gomez of the LAPD Tactical Technology Section wears the new TASER Axon on-body cameras meant for police officers during a Dec. 16, 2014, press conference where Mayor Eric Garcetti announced that the city would purchase cameras in an effort to increase transparency. (Credit: Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times)

Body cameras for officers have become a major issue in the wake of the shooting of unarmed black 18-year-old Michael Brown by a Ferguson, Mo., police officer and the conflicting accounts of what happened.

At a news conference, Garcetti said the cameras “are not a panacea, but they are a critical part of the formula. They’re a great step forward.”

“The trust between a community and its police department can be eroded in a single moment,” Garcetti said. “Trust is built on transparency.”

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