Officer Jeremy Stenda shows the inside of one of two Dysart Police Dept. patrol vehicles on August 4. Both vehicles are now fitted with in-camera systems – located just behind the rearview mirror – made possible by recent grand funding. –Photo by Ruby F. Bodeker

On any given night at the Dysart Police Dept. – if he’s not out on patrol or responding to a call – it’s a safe bet that Officer Jeremy Stenda is hard at work on his computer searching or applying for any number of grants in an effort to keep this rural police department moving forward in the name of community safety.

“It’s most important for the citizens,” Stenda explained to the Telegraph on August 4 as he sat perched on the edge of his station desk on a day off. “I really don’t need anything more than my gun and a set of handcuffs [but] it’s a disservice to the citizens not having these other tools.”

This past July, Stenda received word the department had secured two separate grants totaling $17,504.00 for the purchase of just such tools – $14,685.00 from the Gary Sinise Foundation for two new in-camera systems for patrol vehicles including a back seat camera, and $2,819.00 from the non-profit Iowa Team B.L.U.E for three body-worn cameras for each of the department’s three officers.

“They’re not cheap,” Stenda admitted, “but they’re part of the everyday tools that are needed.”

As Stenda clipped one of the new cameras to his outer carrier vest (bulletproof vest), he repeated his earlier comments – technology upgrades like body-worn cameras are meant to keep the community safe.

One of Dysart Police Dept.’s three new body-warn cameras pictured clipped to an outer carrier vest on August 4. –Photo by Ruby F. Bodeker

“It’s for the citizens. If we don’t have good radios, good body cameras, they’re not protected. And [in turn] the city could be liable. It’s a disservice to the citizens not having these other tools.”

The new body-worn cameras will replace the three aging ones the department already had while the in-camera system is a new tool altogether for the department. All five cameras will work together, Stenda said, and upload data to the Cloud.

“If I turn my lights on in the squad, that automatically activates the dash camera, and then it activates the body camera.”

One of the reasons Stenda said he and his fellow officers including Chief Joe Hols and Officer Ray Brady work so hard to secure grant funding is because doing so leaves breathing room in the city’s budget.

“We’re a small, rural community with budget constraints,” Stenda explained.

The back seat of one of the Dysart Police Dept.’s patrol vehicles pictured on August 4. The vehicle now has a back seat camera thanks to grant funding from the Gary Sinise Foundation — a grant applied for by Officer Jeremy Stenda. –Photo by Ruby F. Bodeker

Grant funds secured by the Dysart Police Dept in the last year total more than $150,000 as it stands currently, Stenda said, with a big chunk of that coming from the Department of Justice’s Office of Community Orienting Policing Services (COPS Office) COPS Hiring Program (CHP) – a grant applied for by Chief Hols.

But no matter which of the three officers writes for any particular grant, Stenda said it’s important for the Dysart Police Dept. to keep doing so.

“From traffic stops to calls, we have the necessary tools to keep the public safe.”