Why Police Should Wear Body Cameras

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.

There have been various situations in which police officers have been falsely accused. Obviously not all police officers are committing misconduct, so the ones that are not would have nothing to hide while wearing a body camera. The purpose of these body cameras are to find out the the truth of what occurs during a one on one encounter with an officer and a citizen. These body cameras would force officers and citizens to be on their best behaviors because now they know they are being recorded and that tape can and will be used against them.

But what happens when they don’t turn the body camera on? There has been cases where an Officer was wearing a body camera but didn’t think to turn it on. Which is common sense because that takes away from the whole purpose and just wasting money. The only problem with body cameras is Officers are in charge of when they are turned on and when they are turned off. They control the record button. Officers need to be faced with the consequences when they don’t use their body camera when they are supposed to. There has already been too many cases where no one knows what happens so the Officer will always win. Just like in the Michael Brown case, where Officer Wilson killed Brown and witnesses were all saying different things as to if Brown was fighting back or if he surrendered. If a body camera would have been worn, then Officer Wilson would have been indicted and justice would have been served. Many incidents like this cause riots and distrust between the public and Officers. The department had the cameras when the killing of Michael Brown happened, but just hadn’t put them into action and start using them yet (Balko 2014). Which is really stupid on their part because if a department has these resources to make things better and to not cause problems for the city then need to be put to good use. This can lead to higher tensions between the

The body camera has become a popular choice amongst police departments worldwide. The situation of the scenario, and if the officer or suspect acted in the right can be determined from past footage. The cause of the body camera has been the allegations against officers for how they acted in certain situations, as well as for how the suspect acted during the callout. The effect has been officers being terminated due to lack of integrity or situational awareness, as well as officer safety. Suspects have also been convicted of false accusations against a police officer, as well as crimes presented in court, from fights, to officer involved shootings. The body worn camera has benefited both police officers and the general public.

With so many incidents occurring between law enforcement and civilians, it’s about time we have our officers wear body cameras. Law enforcement wants to use body cameras, many politicians are in favor for them, Civil-rights groups are advocating them, and communities that already have a strong police presence in their neighborhoods are requesting that the police get cameras now. With the uproar of law enforcement and the death of many black American’s, body cameras can be very useful. There is always that missing link when trying to put these horrible moments back together. Far too many times we end up with the suspect dead and only get one side of the story. With the use of body cameras, we can now get more insight on the events that happen (Boyd, 2015).

Police body cameras have been debated for many years. Many people have concerns about them, whether they are invading the people’s right to privacy or are they really going to help officer’s wright up the incident with the full and honest truth. First and foremost I believe that body cameras should be used as a tool to provide evidence at the time of the incident. As stated early on in the story black young boy that was unarmed got shot up in a shower of bullets, and the grand jury decided not to indict the officer and protest erupted throughout the country. This is one of the reasons Police Body Cameras should be used for.

There has been many situations in which police officers have abused their power. In these cases police officers have brutally beaten or killed innocent civilians. Everyone has heard about a story about how police officers have abused their power by utilising their personal beliefs rather than the reason their profession requires. Some officers cannot disunify their professional life from their personal life. Their identity is distinguished by their uniform. Any struggles in their exclusive life are seen as a threat to their dominance, jurisdiction, or power over the other person and the situation. It is either ethical or unethical. There is no accommodation for the victim to voice their opinion or position. Situations like these are known as Ferguson trails, Floyd Dent, Najee Rivera, and etc. These people have either lost their life or been physically abused. Police officers should wear body cameras because with body cameras it protects others, protects officers, and proves the reality of the actual situation.

Cops everywhere are being looked on with hate and disgust. People are feeling threatened by cops even though they are doing their job to protect us and keep our cities safe. Body cameras are an ever growing topic between many parties, but have they looked at it from all sides? Not everyone was there to witness and judge the situation, but the stories are compelling. With cameras we get what happened in audio/visual proof. They can save jobs and give people the proof needed. However cops deserve their privacy. Body cameras should be on cops, but they should be allowed to turn them on or off as they wish.

Law enforcement agencies have been in a heated debate in the use of body cams by the surrounding communities because of the use of force incidents that have occurred in the media. Body cameras are the new age technology that allows law enforcement agencies to record encounters with the community. There are some positives aspects of law enforcement wearing body cams. The body cam allows the officer to interact with residents which will help to eliminate complaints about police behavior and the use of force encounters. The body cam gives video evidence of the decisions made by on-duty law enforcement in violent situations. This helps keep accountability of law enforcement and the ensure that the department and decreases liability. Because the

Since the death of Michael brown; an unarmed teenager who was fatally shot by a Police Officer. Tensions between Officers and Civilians ascended; the story that the officer made did not make sense to some. There was no hardcore proof of what led up to the death of Michael Brown. Which influenced the grand jury to not indict Officer Darren Wilson under the fact of “provably wrong , inconsistent statements given by witnesses” (IBTimes, Varandani). Bad Police Officers have been getting away with murder for years. They know how to cover up evidence and they know how to make up stories. Both in which is enough to keep them out of jail because lack of cold hard evidence. Which leads to the debate if Police officers should wear body cameras. Even though Many will argue that body cameras are too expensive and may make people uncomfortable. I believe that Police need to wear them. Because with actual video footage taken by the body camera it can be tremendous help in serving justice.

In today’s society no one is safe from everyday peril. Situations arise daily that may present either a law enforcement official or just a civilian with a situation that could warrant the need for extra protection. In some cases it is a matter of he said she said. In just those instances it is important that there be some sort of documentation that provides corresponding evidence. Body cameras have been tested in a small group of police departments and have provided an overwhelming positive effect. Police officers wearing body cameras not only provide the officers with an extra peace of mind but give the civilians documentation to back up their sides of the story.

At times, in investigation there can be confusion. This is because often suspects, witnesses, and police officers have different stories, but who is telling the truth? Body cameras can make it faster and easier to find out. In Source one, 'Political Cartoon', there is a drawing of a witness, a suspect, and a police officer all swearing that they "Always tell the truth". Now, in most cases the witness and the police officer have similar stories while the suspect has an entirely different one. This can make it easier to investigate, while in other cases it may be a bit more complex. If the witness, suspect, and police officers all have completely different stories this is where investigation will most likely be harder and take longer. However, if police officers are required to use body cameras, video footage can be played back to

Think about it, you break a vase in a museum not knowing what to do you try to fix it but it’s not working and consider lying about it. But you also know the place has security cameras around so you decide to tell the truth no matter the consequences. The video from the cameras would not only show us what the police officer did right but what they also did wrong. In the article, “The Right Body Camera Policy”, the author states,” Video footage will provide police superiors with a potent tool for reliable supervision, debriefing and disciplining, enabling them to condemn the bad police work and commend the good.” In other words, the video would be evidence in any other shootings that would allow the people to make a decision about what to

Body cameras footage has proved valuable in the investigation into police misconduct. “Some police departments are doing themselves a disservice by not using body-worn cameras. Everyone around you is going to have a camera's so that everyone else can be able to tell their story better than someone who does not have these cameras”. For example, the student in south Carolina who was pull off her chair by a police officer, because she refused to give her phone. Other students, however, recorded the situation on their phone. They claimed that the student hit the police officer, which resulted in the officer removing her from her seat. However, the student who was pulled out of the chair said she only hit the police officer because he hit her. First, the police officer had been wearing a body camera it would have proved the actual events.

Police are wearing body cameras due to the misconduct they are portraying. A fairly common recommendation for reducing police misconduct is to increase use of body cameras. By recording police-citizen encounters, police supervisors, judges, reporters, and others can get objective evidence of what happened instead of self-serving hearsay (Feeney). Quite often there would be witnesses to the shootings but their statements were either ignored or said to be irrelevant by the authorities. More than likely in cases where police supervisors go off of hearsay the officers are left unpunished