The Village of South Russell moved toward modernizing police video systems and shoring up staffing on Nov. 24.

Police Chief presented a Motorola Solutions customer agreement for purchase of body cameras and supporting cloud software (phase one: body cameras) at $76,044.08, citing the need to replace a Windows‑10‑based system that is no longer supported. The council introduced an ordinance authorizing the chief to execute the agreement and declared an emergency to move readings forward.

The chief also announced two officers (named in the meeting as John Zippe and Kevin Spackman) will transition to full‑time roles with a private security/training firm that developed a STAR (School Transportation Active Threat Response) program; the department intends to keep them on part time when possible. The council moved and voted to authorize the police chief to advertise for up to three full‑time officer positions to fill upcoming vacancies, a motion that passed.

Next steps: council will finalize the Motorola agreement through ordinance readings and hire processes will be launched to recruit officers.