Kansas City police set new policies to improve interactions

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — The Kansas City police department is unveiling several new policies in response to citizen complaints in the aftermath of last summer's racial injustice protests.

The department also announced Thursday about 900 of its officers are now equipped with body cameras, which was one of several demands made by community activists.

The announcement comes a day after Mayor Quinton Lucas and Police Chief Rick Smith met privately with community activists who had made several demands for police reform since the protests.

On Thursday, several civil rights groups who did not attend the meeting sent a letter criticizing Lucas and saying the changes are ineffective and inadequate.

Lucas said he was optimistic the city is making progress in healing its divisions.