A HIGH Court judge has called for the mandatory use of body cameras by police officers and yesterday urged citizens and law enforcement personnel to rely on cellphones and CCTV cameras to record police encounters until such measures are in place.

The call came from Justice Frank Seepersad in a ruling delivered in favour of a member of the Trinidad and Tobago Regiment who successfully sued the State for wrongful arrest and malicious prosecution.

The judge also raised serious concerns about the near-total erosion of public trust in the Trinidad and Tobago Police Service (TTPS), describing the situation as “disturbing and deplorable” for a country grappling with rampant lawlessness.