Const. Patrick Small was part of a three-month pilot project testing body cameras with the Fredericton Police Force.

Small is on the traffic beat, and when he pulls people over, they're usually not too happy.

“Once they knew they were being video and audio recorded, it really de-escalated some situations,” said Small.

Monday, the pilot project was turned into a five-year agreement worth $115,000 for the six body cameras, along with new recording equipment for interview rooms at the department.

Recordings will be kept on file for up to a year-and-a-half, or longer, if they are related to an investigation.

The public will be told beforehand if they're about to be recorded.

A third party will be responsible for the storage of all the video and audio captured.

Fredericton Police Force Deputy Chief Martin Gaudet said the logistical requirements of having a server and back-ups means it made more sense to outsource because the department can save money.

Not every police department feels that body-worn video cameras have been worth the effort.

The Halifax Regional Police did not go forward with a trial run on body cameras that would've tallied up to about $1.5 million per year.

The Fredericton Police Force says the technology could prove to be helpful in court, using domestic violence as an example.

“The officers see what they see with the victim, the suspect, the children, with the house in complete disarray, and six months later you take that court and try to put that on paper,” Gaudet said. “It's just not the same as presenting an audio/visual of what you observed on that particular night, in that moment in time when it was happening.”

The police department is hoping to have a total of 12 body cameras by the end of the year, with plans to get more in 2019.

With files from CTV Atlantic’s Nick Moore.