Over the past few years, there have been many tragedies involving police which have caused people to feel unsafe and weary. Body cameras are a great way to combat this issue because they offer both audible and visual evidence of misconduct. This can be used to keep the public and police accountable for their actions while maintaining an evidenced-based argument compared to the usual testimony based argument. In a Washington Post article by Dunn, he said: "Video provides compelling evidence of police misconduct and can be used to train, discipline, fire and even prosecute officers” (2017). Dunn is valid in saying this because the footage when appropriately handled can be used within the courtroom to help the judge, the public, and officers see …show more content…
“First, there's no guarantee that the public will ever see footage from police body cameras, especially in cases where it may be helpful to defendants or civil litigants” (Buttar, 2016). Although this may be true in some cases, laws are being made to ensure that the footage is available for not only police but the public. For example, a police department in Seattle posts their footage to YouTube so everyone can see what their police have recorded (Dunn & Lieberman, 2017). Others believe body cameras should not be worn because of possible mass incarceration issues amongst the public. “Cameras could capture footage used against defendants in criminal trials—either where the footage depicts criminal acts, like jaywalking or selling loose cigarettes, or where it merely supports suspicion of potential crime, justifying subsequent stops and searches that would otherwise be illegal” (Buttar, 2016). Some cops could abuse cameras in such a way; however, the footage collected is currently reviewed only by specific professionals and debates over sending footage directly to specialized agencies for review is still highly considered. Sending the footage to these special facilities leaves little room for tampering by police and will help ensure the authenticity of the footage. Although many may believe those body cameras will cause more harm than help to the community, body cameras are still highly useful and are statistically reported to assist police and the
Across the country a growing number of legislative departments have been debating about the pros and cons of police body cameras. This paper will further explore benefits, as well as the downfalls of using such devices. This paper will also look at specific cases and examine whether or not body cameras were helpful in various situations. It will examine if they were a deterrent in cases dealing with police brutality and domestic violence. It also looks at how they could be misused and assisting some officers in covering up their corrupt behavior.
A man walks down a road, and is confronted by a police officer wearing a body worn camera. The man and the officer exchange words, and soon after a physical altercation ensues. According to the man’s statement, the officer was out of line, assaulted him, and his privacy was violated by the use of the camera. The officer’s statement, however, said that he was trying to question the man about being intoxicated and the usage of vulgar language, when the subject then began threatening him and ultimately began the attack on him; the officer continued to state he used the minimum amount of force necessary to minimize the threat. The man was ultimately convicted by the video evidence. Police officers feel that wearing body worn cameras will provide all the necessary evidence in any given situation, and protect them from public scrutiny, while the public believes that their privacy is being violated, and at too high of a financial cost. Police officers and public citizens must each concede to find the truth.
Within recent years there has been much controversy surrounding police officers and whether or not they should be wearing body cameras to document their everyday interactions with the public. While the use of body cameras may seem to invade the public or police privacy. Police-worn body cameras will be beneficial to law enforcement and civilians all over the world. Police must be equipped with body cameras to alleviate any doubt in the effectiveness of officers. Law enforcement worn body cameras would enhance the trust of the public by keeping both the officers and the citizens accountable for their actions, providing evidence, and helping protect them from false accusations, while protecting privacy
The dispute of police body cameras truly hit the media hard this week. Blasting from the headlines all citizens were aware that Michael Brown was lethally shot in Ferguson, Missouri. This prompted officers to become fortified with body cameras. This technologically progressive world that we live in today has shaped a world of tweeting, posting and uploading. It’s about time that police departments take advantage of the tools accessible to them, especially with the advancement of equipment. The move forward in technology will help to alleviate speculation on any misconduct perpetrated. There now will be hard honest evidence of any crime committed against a police officer.
I selected an article about police body cameras. The article cited several studies, as well as the authors’ ideas and thoughts. The article, titled Police Body Cameras, is part of the CATO Institute’s National Police Misconduct Reporting Project, and prepared by Matthew Feeney in 2015. The theme throughout the article is that the use of body cameras will reduce police misconduct. Although we all hope this is the case, we must also look at the other issues involved with the wearing of body cameras. In an effort to gain citizen buy-in and obtain their opinions, they conducted surveys. Interestingly enough, most people did not want the officers to record them, unless it was during an enforcement encounter, such as a traffic stop or arrest situation.
The social media and the public might want police body cam footage release but sometimes it might be to graphic or controversial. Police body cameras have been a topic since the incident with Michael Brown in august of 2014. Police shot and killed an unarmed individual in ferguson, MO, leading to many people wanting cameras on police. Whether the cameras are a good idea or not this paper will explore the facts and sides of police body cameras. Overall body cameras should be required Because they can save the lives of the innocent, keep innocent people from going to jail, and can help a case as more evidence.
Body cameras can hold police officers accountable for their actions, both the good and the bad. “Continuously wearing body cameras would hold police accountable for their appropriate, and inappropriate, conduct” (Buam). Also when the citizens make accusations they could pull the video from the camera and see whether the police officer did what they said they did or not. “Video recorded by body cams protect any false accusations, misconduct, or abuse
Police officers should have to be required to wear body cameras to ensure the safety of the citizens and to provide evidence for a court case. Many times the police have gotten away with too many things and commit crimes that go unnoticed It’s time we put a stop to that and we make a change. With the use of body cameras that police force would be more trustworthy, they wouldn’t commit crimes, and they would be able to supply the court with undisputable evidence.
Body cameras in policing are still new, but more and more agencies are beginning to implement this technology into their line of work. At first police officers were very hesitant to wear these body cameras because they were afraid they would infringe themselves and give away their own privacy. Later, as body cameras were beginning to see more use in the work place, officers began to realize that these very own body cameras that they once thought would only cause themselves harm would actual prove to be useful in a variety of situations. Some of these situations can be citizen complaints, to even backing up an officers use of force. Body cameras can be the one sole thing that can give
In certain cases, such as domestic violence abuse, the recordings documented from these body worn cameras can be very useful in the prosecution process, especially with witnesses that are reluctant to share what happened at the scene because the one inflicting harm was a loved one. Michael D. White, author of a project funded by the U.S. Department of Justice titled, Police Officer Body Worn Cameras- Assessing the Evidence, points out that the cameras are useful, “in providing an exact record of the demeanor and language of the accused, the disturbance throughout the scene and the emotional effect on the victim” (25).
There are a lot of incidents that happen between police, and criminals. Always a mix up, confusion, miscommunication, and sadly, police brutality, but police always get the benefit of the doubt because of lack of evidence. A incident happened way back in around 2009, it was actually on January 1st. A twenty-two year old young man named Oscar Grant was shot at Fruitvale Station, by an officer that “thought” he was using a taser, but actually used a gun. If that officer would have had a body camera on, he would’ve been more aware of what he was doing, and he would have been caught sooner because they would have been able to see, and tell that Grant wasn’t being defiant.
Law enforcement has took hundreds of years to perfect, existing today to provide protection, enforcement of laws, prevent crimes and maintaining order. It has been long argued that requiring officers to wear camera device would have calming effects on both law enforcement officers and the civilians who they encounter. This came to light nationwide after a fatal law enforcement officer shooting in Ferguson, MO., in 2014. After that shooting national law enforcement departments came under fire for excessive force and racial discrimination this continues to grow, boosted by social media. Following a series of high profile law enforcement officer’s shootings, law enforcement departments across the nation turned to wearing body worn cameras, hoping they would limit abuses.
Department of Justice In 2014, the Police Executive Research Forum (PERF), with support from the U.S. Department of Justice's Office of Community Oriented Policing (COPS Office), researched the use of body-worn cameras in police agencies. PERF interviewed more than 40 police executives who have experience with body-worn cameras, reviewed more than 20 body-worn camera policies submitted by police agencies, and hosted a one-day conference in Washington, D.C., where more than 200 police chiefs, sheriffs, scholars, federal justice officials, and other experts discussed their experiences with body-worn cameras (COPS). Among police executives whose departments use body-worn cameras, there is an overall perception that the cameras are a useful tool. One of the benefits listed by the police executives was the fact that body cameras may prevent confrontational situations by improving officer professionalism and the behavior of people being recorded (COPS).
saying that with the body cameras it will help everyone and the community feel more secure. Having them will help stop all the “talk” of what's been going in society and finally bring peace. There have been incidents where police officers have used body cameras, and have actually helped situations be solved in a quicker way. Body cameras have the actually tape with the time that makes everything go by smoother and faster. These facts could be backed up in court to help maybe have it be looked at from both point of views. The article also stated that, “A study conducted of the Rialto, California, police department from 2012-2013 showed the potential of cameras. With half of the police department where in cameras recording each interaction with
Much interest in the technology of the body cameras comes from a growing problem that the United States has been having a major problem with police violence. Though some might argue that the wearing of body cameras violate privacy, in fact the use of the cameras will minimize violence, show accountability, and a human side of policing. These body cameras would help serve by providing video evidence that can be referenced and use anytime allegations are made against police officers and criminals alike. The use of these body cameras are somewhat in the evaluation and study stages, but they are quickly becoming the standard in some police departments across the United States. These cameras would not only serve to provide video evidence, but it provide accountability. The ideal policy for the cams is that they stay on and continue recording throughout police officers shifts, which would help eliminate any possibility of doing something that would not be used as evidence later on and help them evade the recording of abuse committed while on duty.