Do you think cops do their job the right way? Do you think cops could do their job better? In recent years more and more police brutalities have occurred from the death of Trayvon Martin in Sanford, FL on 2012 to the shooting of Michael Brown in Ferguson, MO on 2014. Many people now do not respect or trust the cops anymore because of the way that cops have been doing their job. What is one way that the cops can gain the respect of the people again. What is one tool that could help capture what a cop does on duty. Body cameras on cops should be enforced in America because the camera can prove which person is innocent and which person is guilty in a court of law, body cameras offer a safer community, and it keeps the cop accountable of the …show more content…
They can help make sure that any information given from the officers is correct and not incorrect. They can get the full truth in a report given by an officer. With body cameras you can compare the report to the video footage. Body cameras are a very useful tool in the world today.
Evidence is very important in a case. So what is the best way to get true evidence? Body cams can help find the evidence that is needed for a case. This way evidence can always be 100% correct. Andy Hoover said “Video provided critical evidence in the Hummelstown case and in the shooting death of Walter Scott in North Charleston, S.C., in which officer Michael Slager has been charged with homicide.”. This is proof of the positive effect that body cameras have on the community. If body cameras were not used in this case, the officer could have not be charged with nothing. Evidence is very helpful when it is correct. “Captain De Anda says the footage has been useful as evidence during prosecution, and that the presence of the cameras seems to serve as a check on inappropriate behavior by both police and citizens. In addition, he says, it 's already served as a protection for officers accused of excessive force.” says Amanda Paulson who lives in Ferguson where the death of Michael Brown occurred.
The presence of body cameras make the community that they are in a safer and better place. Body cams can make
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
What is a body camera, a body camera is a small unit that is placed on police officer. It is usually a small unit place on a officers glasses, shoulder, or on the chest. Most unit are self contained but if it were malfunction the are a bit expensive to replace (Erstad). These cameras have to be manually turned on and off (EInvestigators). These cameras can possibly break or malfunction on the job but only in a rare cases (EInvestigators). Some of these cameras take a lot of maintenance to keep running like software and SD cards storage. As these cameras are getting more widespread and so city are making them mandatory to be on police at all times. But with more cameras there is more footage and people want that footage released for the public to have an opinion on. But releasing the footage might cause some controversy and may not be suitable for public eyes. This type of issue causes a lot of problems
“There have been other high-profile instances of officers not turning on cameras. One officer involved in the shooting of a 22-year-old black man in the small city of Saratoga Springs, Utah, in September didn't turn on his body camera. A second officer involved in the incident had no camera” (Jackson). Body Cameras could help officers make their jobs easier by keeping civilians more civil. Body Cameras would help show if they unnecessary force against civilians. The more use of body cameras would help improve behaviors of officers who are using excessive force for no
Another advantage to law enforcement agents wearing body cameras is to document the contact made between the officer and the victim and/or suspect. This documentation can be used as evidence in
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 cams have the potential to provide more accurate evidence and depiction of the moment of police incidents.
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
A fairly common recommendation for reducing police misconduct 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. Body cameras have been the talk of many police departments among the United States. But not everyone has tried it out or used it yet, as we can see. Body cameras should be used because citizens are being innocently killed by police, officers are being falsely accused of wrongdoing, and it allows for physical proof of evidence.
The United States criminal justice system has been having major issues with police brutality recently. According to The Washington Post, In 2015 alone almost one thousand people were shot and killed by the police. This statistic is staggering as it shows how much deadly force is being inflicted on the public. The police brutality is not only shootings as in many cases the police actions are justified in court, however, there has been recent outrage over police being overly aggressive and abusive towards the public; specifically with the African American community. This has sparked mass protest and in extreme cases riot have broken out. The public has become fed up with the police getting off with little to not punishment for their crimes due to most of the evidence being testimonies. Body cameras are the glaring solution to this problem. The give insight into what really happened during an altercation where there was an officer related shooting that left a young man dead. An example of this is a recent event in Baltimore saw a man arrested on drug charges and got held in jail for months. However the arresting officer was wearing a body camera. Police body cameras start to record for the previous thirty seconds prior to activation. When the footage was reviewed it saw the officer plant evidence at the scene to incriminate the suspect. This led to the release of the accused suspect and the officers are under review (Hendry, E. R., & Barajas, J., 2017, para. 4). Now if the arresting officer did not have that body camera an innocent man would be in jail on drug charges that he had nothing to do with. These are situations that could be happening more than 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.
(Weisburg) As a result, studies have shown, that citizens have developed comfort towards officers equipped with body cameras. (Fullerton Police Department) This new found trust has the ability to change the mindset of a community in a positive manner. (Mims) This alone could help revive a community such as Ferguson, that has been in shambles ever since Michael Brown was killed. Officer Drumond a highly respected officer at Sherwood said “I support body cameras and find it very comforting that everything I do is on camera”. (Weisburg) If body cameras can give officers a sense of comfort it can help improve their work ethic as well as keep them relaxed while on shift. This can lead to trust between officers and the community. Ultimately, body cameras have the ability to restore trust in a community as well as keep both citizens and officers acting within the law.
Police should use cameras because it can be very use full to what really happen in the street everyday, It will be useful in the court against victim. Body camera can also be helpful for races cops that tries to take advantage of other race. Before the write there report they can go back and listen to what the victim has said to the and listen for anything the victim said the was an assault to the cop.When they go to court they cant replay it so that the court could have strong evidence against victim and whatever weapon, drug or any illegal activities .Body camera can be very useful communicating with the outside world an help use to capture criminals.The bod camera cant help caught a lot of drug dealer and can help the state inforce laws
Police officers should start wearing body cameras. Wearing body cameras will help police officer evaluate themselves. Police officers have many situations and need feedback to make changes to their attitude and comprehensive skills. The videos gather by the body cameras police officers wear can be used for evidence against the citizen or police officer in case of incident. Body cameras might create financial problem to the police department and are expensive, but they will save the lives of
The issue of police brutality is a slippery slope to contextualize. On one hand a police officer is doing his/her job. On the other hand, there has been questionable arrests made with the use of force. Civilians are recording and releasing video footage that sheds a light on tactics of police officers. The police force has tried to combat the rising scrutiny with Body Worn Cameras (BWC). These cameras were designed to offer a glimpse into the life of law enforcement. Yet, the cameras have added more scrutiny to what goes on in day to day police work. In the court of public opinion, evidence has to be out right blatant not to be prosecuted. Cameras are one step toward the right direction. The question remains, what’s next? To rely on police policy makers on determining what’s right or wrong
I agree with the advantages in your reply to police cameras about it improving police and citizen behavior. However, I'm not so sure about some of the other reasons. A recent study from Rialto, California shows that there were more complaints after officers started wearing body cameras as opposed to when they weren't. (Feeney, unknown). When I think of officers using body cameras I think of the case of Justine Damon. She was fatally shot by police in Australia. Both officers were wearing body cameras but neither of them had theirs turned on. (Berman, 2017). So, whether the picture was clear or no is not an issue if it's not turned on. There are many quirks that still need to be worked out with this system. The implications