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Persuasive Essay On Police Brutality

Decent Essays

Police brutality and the use of force is a big problem in American today, so police departments are taking a few steps to prevent this from happening. There are multiple cases where some police officers’ actions are questioned, leading to an untrusting public. No matter if it was racial, hate, a mentally unstable police officer, or the police officer was just doing their job, there’s an easy way to find out now. Body cameras are being used in various cities and states and have proved to keep the level of police brutality and injustice down.
The cameras are tiny portable devices, about the size and length of a cigarette stick, which can be easily mounted on sunglasses, clipped to hats or helmets, or attached to uniform collars or lapels. (TeenInk, 2017) The base of the recording device is wired and attached to the officer’s uniform and sits concealed in a pocket. It can record high-quality video even in low lighting conditions such as at night or a dark vehicle interior, and also provides an interface for the officer’s two-way radio. The objective of body cameras is to deliver an accurate record of officer engagements for complete situational awareness and tamper proof digital evidence. A well-known example of police brutality and injustice is the Trayvon Martin case. On the night of February 26, 2012, there was a struggle between the teenager and George Zimmerman. This eventually led to Martin’s death. (Law, 2017) Arguments say that if there had been the use of body cameras this wouldn’t have happened. Another example is Michael Brown

who was shot 12 times by officer Darren Wilson. It isn’t quite clear what happened, but again, the use of body cameras would tell. (Law, 2017)
Implementing the use of body cameras has several advantages. First, a clear picture. The camera can’t pick up absolutely everything, but it can give a much clearer picture of what actually happened. This would help juries understand what happened in the incident and it would remove a lot of uncertainty. This would also help to speed up court proceedings by providing solid and factual evidence. Second, improved behavior. People tend to behave a lot better if they know they’re being watched. Those who are being filmed are less likely to

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