RCMP have called a news conference for Friday to announce the use of body-worn cameras by their officers in this province.

The Mounties will show off the new equipment and how it works for media.

It’s all part of a national deployment of body cams and new digital evidence management system rolling out this month in about 10 per cent of all RCMP detachments.

Over the next nine months, about 1,000 frontline RCMP officers, per month, will begin using body-worn cameras and the new digital system.

And by this time next year, it’s expected 90 per cent of frontline members will be using body cams with full deployment within the next 18 months.

Their use by police has been controversial in many jurisdictions, with some supporting them as a deterrent and critical asset in criminal investigations.

Others, however, have raised various privacy concerns.

Friday’s news conference is scheduled for 1 p.m. at RCMP headquarters in St. John’s, and VOCM News will be there.