Police Body Cameras: A Useful tool or a necessary evil?
/Police Body Cameras: A useful tool or a necessary evil?
By: Robert Foreman
The use of body cameras by police officers have now become the norm instead of the exception. However, there are some law enforcement agencies, such as the New York State Police, who have still not utilized the devices. However, that is about to change as the New York State Police announced that they are moving forward with a pilot program that will outfit the state troopers with the body cameras. It is not yet known how many of the troopers will be outfitted with the cameras when the pilot program is put into place.
While body cameras are now largely associated with law enforcement they have many uses, including in the media, military, medical and recreational fields. However, as the use of body cameras has become more prevalent they have become a hot button issue among some officers and the general public. While some officers find the cameras useful in the field, others find the devices intrusive. The use of body cameras by officers maintains a high level of support among the public who believe that it provides more transparency for law enforcement.
Of course, while many in the public view body cameras as a way to hold law enforcement officers responsible for the actions, both good and bad, one has to put themselves in the officer’s position. How would you feel having to wear a device to work that is set to record everything you say and do while you are doing your job? I doubt many people in the general public would be comfortable having to wear a body camera throughout their work day and have their actions recorded. Then again, most people are likely working in places where they are already under some form of video surveillance by their employers, but they don’t have to wear a surveillance device as officers do.
According to the website ProCon.org, public support of body cameras stems in part from the fact that the devices provide evidence that either proves or disproves police misconduct allegations. While the cameras are useful for police training, there are those who believe that the devices place undue physical and mental stress on officers who are already in high-stress jobs. There is also concern that vulnerable victims and witnesses of crimes face the risk of exposure when they are being recorded by the body cameras.
Yet, like everything else in life, there are very real pros and cons to body cameras. The pros include increased safety for both the public and the officers. Generally, both officers and the public will try to exhibit their best behavior when they know they are being recorded by a body camera. Body cameras not only improve accountability for the police, as a whole, but more importantly the footage can protect officers from false charges of misconduct. If a suspect opts to lie about an officer’s conduct during an arrest the body camera footage will immediately exonerate the officer.
On the flip side, the cons of body cameras include decreasing the safety of officers if they encounter someone who is mentally disturbed or impaired by drugs or alcohol who reacts violently to being recorded. Anyone who works in law enforcement, or has ever seen as episode of ‘COPS’, knows all too well how some people who will become belligerent, or even violent, when they know they are being recorded. In some cases, those people may be attempting to force a violent reaction from the officer to claim police brutality and deflect from their own wrongdoing. Another issue with body cameras is the price tag. Departments around the country not only have to purchase the cameras for the officers, but pay for the training, data storage facilities, maintenance and other costs. Additionally, body cameras can be unreliable due to an insufficient battery life that is often not capable of covering the full-extent of everything an officer does during their lengthy shifts.
While the debate over the use of body cameras by police officers will likely rage on, it appears that the devices will continue to be a major part of the average officer’s daily life. Body cameras are not a perfect solution to police accountability nor do they lessen the potential life and death risks that officers take whenever they encounter a violent criminal. Yet, they provide a glimpse into the human condition that includes both law enforcement officers and the public-at-large. Sometimes that glimpse is good and sometimes it is ugly. However, at the end of the day the body cameras tell the unvarnished truth without any hidden agenda. Then again, we all have to become accustomed to ‘big brother’ watching us, whether we like it or not, but that’s another topic altogether.
