Before the NYPD moves forward with its body camera program for officers, the department's inspector general wants his own say on how the program should be expanded. NY1's Courtney Gross filed the following report.

The 23rd Precinct in East Harlem is part of an experiment. Some officers here are patrolling with body cameras.

"If they stop someone, then someone can't say, 'OK, well he harassed me or he did whatever.' It's on tape," said one person in the neighborhood.

Recordings started in December as part of a pilot program that the NYPD rolled out in six precincts across the city. Now, months into it, a major police oversight agency is saying that program needs to change.

"There are some definite improvements that can be made," said NYPD Inspector General Philip Eure.

In the first report examining the NYPD's use of body cameras, the city's inspector general said officers need better guidelines in how to use the technology, like when to turn it on.

The report found that one officer kept the camera on all the time. Others flipped the switch only when making an arrest.

"There are issues that are going to arise in the fairly early stages of an investigative encounter that might not be captured under the current policy," Eure said. "So that's something that the NYPD could be doing a better job on."

The inspector general also found that the NYPD needs a clear policy for how the public can review this video and how to tell people they are being recorded.

As part of the pilot program, just 54 officers are wearing body cameras. That's out of a force of nearly 35,000. The inspector general said he wanted to release this report and these recommendations before any more officers were wearing body cameras.

"No, I don't think the city is ready to roll this out on a wide-scale basis until they get the policy right," Eure said.

In response to the report, both the mayor and One Police Plaza said they were reviewing the recommendations.

"Body cameras are going to be an important contribution to the reforms we're making to policing in this city," said Mayor Bill de Blasio. "I think he put forward some important concerns. I'm sure the NYPD is going to evaluate them, as I will."

In the meantime, cameras here in East Harlem will keep rolling.

"It's for our safety and theirs also," said one person in the neighborhood.