A monitoring device comprising a frame usable as facewear, one or more cameras built into the frame, a cover attached to the frame that covers the camera when not in use, and a communication circuit for communicating the camera content to a remote server. In one embodiment the camera can be activated by gestures such as a hands-up gesture in which both hands are raised over the head, when the user is wearing gesture input nodes on their hands or wrists. The camera can alternately be activated by an audio cue or a wrist-worn base having an activation button so that the camera can be activated when the user is in hand restraints. In one embodiment, if the camera is suddenly inoperable or the monitoring device is removed from the user's face, remote wearable cameras on the user's person are activated to continue recording audio, video, or other content.