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William Fix

ENC 2135

Whitney Gilchrist

9 April 2017

Police Body Cameras: Perfecting Policing?

Over the past several decades, the trust between the public at large and the law

enforcement has worn thin. Several key events, including police brutality, shootings, and racial

injustice have sparked protests, demonstrations, and full on riots. The reasoning behind these

events is that the criminal justice system is not working equally, and not working towards justice

for all. Police officers who commit wrongs and go against their training and what they are sworn

to do have not always been held accountable, reprimanded or charged, for their actions. On top

of the reform in our justice system, there is a need for more policy and better, more objective

evidence on interactions between the public and Law Enforcement Officers. Commonly, there

are cases in the court system and documentations of encounters that are only based on statements

given by each party (an Officer and the subject the encountered). There is a belief that the

criminal justice system is biased, and racist is some aspects, and unfair in that Law Enforcement

Officers are protected and held above the laws that they enforce. To reduce this trend and

reaffirm societies trust in Law Enforcement, there has been a push from both the public and

figures in law to widen the use of Body Worn Cameras. With the use of cameras, there is a hope

that there will be a reduce in the excessive use of force or deadly force, as well as increased

respect and cooperation between both parties.

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Understanding the use of a body camera requires some knowledge of the laws that they

are used to help define and give evidence for. When an officer makes a questionable decision, or

a situation is to chaotic to make sense of after the fact, a camera is used to help literally play

back the situation to see what decisions were made and if they were the right ones. Sometimes it

regards the way an officer or individual behaves that causes a situation, so the recording of an

encounter helps to have that for future reference. Other times officers use force to exact an arrest,

protect property, and save other lives. It is not as common, but officers can sometimes be put in

situations that dictate the need for lethality. Also known as deadly force, this is used to stop an

individual from causing great harm to an officer or another member of the public. deadly force,

as defined in the state of Florida, says that force that is likely to cause death or great bodily

harm and includes, but is not limited tofiring of a firearm in the direction of the person to be

arrested, even though no intent exists to kill or inflict great bodily harm. (F.S.S. 776.06)

We understand that there are certain parameters that are used to define justifiable use of

force. With a Body Worn Camera, it is extremely likely that an event involving deadly force is

recorded, and will help to determine whether it was justified. However, this applies to more than

just deadly force and shootings; There is much more to policing than violence or killings. The

use of cameras helps to record how they interact with subjects, what policies they follow, and

how subjects behave with them. Mainly, the evidence produced by the cameras helps to keep

transparency with our criminal justice system, ensuring that whomever the guilty party is, that

there is ample evidence to ensure that they are prosecuted for it, or vice versa and exonerated for

their crimes.

Now with any legislation or policy, there are always drawbacks or shortcomings to them.

For the incorporation of Body Cameras, it is in their nature. Cameras cost on average of $300
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USD for a single set of 1 camera and the equipment needed to operate it (Li). Now factor this

price into the volume of Law Enforcement Officers who would use this and the number is

staggering. This doesnt include the computer software needed to handle the sheer amount of

data that numerous cameras recording video at all hours of the day, or where that data would be

sent to. With a cost like this, its no wonder that as of 2013, a mere 4 years ago, only one-third of

local departments and agencies were equipped and operated body worn cameras (Brian A.

Reaves). Inversely, the benefit of having these cameras, and the decreased amount of incident

surrounding them, helps to provide a more efficient agency. Many departments are reaping the

benefits of spending less time working with complaints, filing reports, and working with law

suits thanks to the cameras (Yale Review 536).

Policing is a representative of local governments and laws, making what law enforcement

does also determined by law makers and judicial powers. So, with a new policy like

incorporating body cameras, there needs to be legislation and policy behind it, determining how

it used. When would the camera need to be used? Who gets to the see the footage that is

recorded? Should every officer be equipped with a camera? Does every department in the U.S.

have a need for them? These are important things to consider when making policy for something

as complicated as policing. These questions would be discussed and thoroughly researched by a

governing body before a decision could be made to have cameras implemented. According to

Kelly Freund, problems with the security of footage is also a concern, being that there will be an

impact on free speech, and the possibility that police officers are monitored improperly, as well

as citizens. With the improper release of videos recorded from an official source, people can

come under public scrutiny, which poses a great legal threat. (92-95)
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With these cameras, what needs to be determined is whether they are effective enough, or

justifiable enough to be purchased for government agencies. The cost of having cameras is

footed by the local and federal government, but is this spending cost-effective? Is there enough

reason all the time to have them? The use of video evidence recorded by police to prevent police

brutality and ensure indictment is not necessarily guaranteed by video evidence. Often times,

there are videos of police in action, which cast a certain light, but do not offer the full story.

Vertesi writing for Time explains as such, an example specifically being the beating of Rodney

King, which despite being videotaped, was not enough to indict officers. (Vertesi). To an

untrained eye or someone without context, a video may have different meaning than those who

have a direct knowledge of the situation and its context. However, one the same token, it is

useful to have things like audio and video recording to show what exactly transpires in a case or

situation. The recording of a voice, replaying the way statements are given and the tone in

peoples voices makes all the difference in context, especially when compared to the notes taken

by an officer and given in a later statement. A huge benefit to this as well is that digital

recordings are 100% accurate, as opposed to relying strictly based on accounts and testimonies

from witnesses and officers. These cameras have been found to benefit specific types of crimes

as well, having shown an increase in the actual conviction rates, and the effectiveness of legal

action in Domestic violence and Intimate partner violence (Morrow).

One of the complications with body cameras is how they are designed, and what they are

capable of capturing. If a department chooses to use a compact, efficient camera that does not

create as much data but still records video and audio, they can do so to still have the feature as

part of their agency. This then creates the issue that if the camera captures an image that is

unusable, then the video or audio may not be effective as evidence and cause a crime or police
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brutality to go almost undocumented in a sense, due to the lack thereof evidence. As well as this,

cameras being worn on the body can only be so large, so they will not have the capabilities of a

normal camera, and can only capture so much of an image. Most body cameras are able to

capture a greater picture than most cell phones, at the greatest perspective: The body of the

officer.

Another, more recent issue with the recording of police activity is the backlash facing the

concept. For some, citizens have a fear that they may be recorded in a vulnerable state or in

privacy while with the police, and then that information or situation may be released to the

internet or the media. This is valid point, being there is a constant danger for data and

information stored and sent over the internet, and the risk that it poses for peoples privacy, since

the police have so much contact with the public. There are federal and state laws on wiretapping

by police and federal agents, and in some cases the recording by body worn cameras could fit

under these laws, thereby making them illegal and unusable in court. This put great strain on

departments utilizing them. (Freund)

Unfortunately, a large portion of data on Police Body worn cameras are only perceived or

interpreted, and non-empirical, meaning that there is no scientific or definitive data on the

subject to prove or disprove their effectiveness on police monitoring and increasing the publics

trust. But this does not mean that these studies are without merit or useful statistics. Many police

officers found that the presence of the device recording encouraged and reminded them to stay

professional and behave differently. This also reflects the same subjects being interacted with.

There is a reduction in the use of force while a body worn camera is recording, as many officers

will only respond to force with force, whereas without cameras they use force more often, and

without there being force from the subject. Another reason for the reduction in force is because
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of the change in behavior by citizens. When a citizen is being recorded, they are less likely to act

violent, or even say certain things because they know that they are being recorded. There is also

the increase in number of convictions and crimes reported thanks to the introduction of cameras,

which is beneficial for obvious reasons. Cases and incidents that are normally unreported now

are less likely to reoccur or leave the chance for future, worse crimes to be committed.

Overall, the use of body cameras and their effectiveness needs to be determined on a case

by case basis. In some areas where departments and agencies see extremely high public contact

and regularly have physical arrests and use of force, should more than likely invest in equipment

like body cameras and audio devices. With some areas that have low or no complains with

police, relatively little use of force, and less funding should probably not invest in them because

of the costly nature and difficult usage.

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Works Cited
Brian A. Reaves, Ph.D. Local Police Departments, 2013: Equipment And Technology. 7 July
2015. Report. March 2017.
Coates, Ta-Nehisi. The Atlantic. 12 July 2016. 9 April 2017.
Fan, Mary D. "Privacy, Public Disclosure, Police Body Cameras: Policy Splits." Alabama Law
Review 68.2 (2016): 396-444. Print.
Florida Legislature. "JUSTIFIABLE USE OF FORCE." Florida State Statues. 2016. 776.06.
Law.
Freund, Kelly. "When Cameras Are Rolling: Privacy Implications of Body-Mounted Cameras on
Police." Columbia Journal of Law and Social Problems (2015): 92-95.
Li, Shirley. The Atlantic. 25 August 2014. Digital Article. March 2017.
Lippman, Gary E. "Will Police Body Cameras be a Mandatory Subject of Bargaining in
Florida?" Florida Bar Journal 90.10 (2016): 57-61. Print.
Morrow, J. Weston. "Assessing the Impact of Police Body-Worn Cameras on Arresting,
Prosecuting, and Convicting Suspects of Intimate Partner Violence." Police Quarterly
September 2016: 303-325. Article.
Pagliarella, Chris. "Police Body-Worn Camera Footage: A Question of Access." Yale Law &
Policy Review 34.2 (2016): 533-43. Print.
Vertesi, Janet. "The Problem With Police Body Cameras." Time 7 May 2015. Magazine Article.

Research Proposal
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Research question:

Are Police Body cameras worth the effort and cost?

Police Body Cameras: Perfecting Policing?

With my topic, I will discuss the topic of Police and Law Enforcement body-worn

cameras. The main idea and focus for the paper will be to research and discuss the costs and

benefits of Police body cameras, and what their effects are negatively or positively, and how

things have been changed with their implementation. Some of the key points will be the

monetary and physical cost of body cameras, and whether this is worth the cost of using them in

some places. Another major point is the benefits and drawbacks of their use, including statistics

of the public and police, and if the use of cameras lowers use of force, complaints and

injuries/deaths in the line of duty.

Another major point of research with police body cameras is the new movement and legal

issues against them. There are numerous laws and lawsuits that are preventing their use, causing

them to become more of an issue in certain situations. Some of these include filming in areas that

have privacy restrictions like hospitals and other areas which are considered private and are

legally protected so.

I chose this topic because it is very much related to where I can to go with a career and

my major. It is a goal of mine to eventually become a police officer or some figure in the

criminal justice system, so this topic is related to my future endeavors as well. The use of police

body cameras has been a topic of national conversation, and has been brought to light by other

national events and movements. I hope that with this project, I can learn a significant amount
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about body cameras and their usage, and to hopefully learn what their future might be so I be

more educated on the subject.

One of the issues I may have with this project is writing objectively. The research topic is

very straight forward, however there is a large amount of data on the subject that must be

analyzed to be used effectively to research the topic. Another Issue with the project will most

likely be the collection of data and finding suitable sources, as most of the statistics are only

published in a large array of places and sources, from government websites and reports, to public

newspapers and journals. After finding as many strong sources as I can, it will be a matter of

analyzing them to apply them to the topic and writing about it.