Positive And Negative Effects Of Requiring Police Officers To Wear Body Cameras Unit 8
Positive and Negative Effects of Requiring Police Officers to Wear Body Cameras. The body cameras can help solve issues that are questioned. One problem with the cameras, however, has been cost. According to White, M. (2015), he has researched body cameras and predicts they will one day become as commonly used by police as Tasers. More than 17,000 U.S. law-enforcement agencies use the electrical weapons, according to Taser International. Body cams likely will become the norm within a decade. White estimates 25 percent or more of the nation 's police departments are either using body cameras or getting ready to start implementing the technology. He predicts the number will jump to one-third or more within the next year. In addition, the Border Patrol currently is testing the cameras for use by their agents and officers. According to Mims, C. (2014), the Department of Justice issued guidelines for law-enforcement agencies on how to use the technology, including how and when to record and store the data. The technology isn 't cheap. Equipping a large police force with body cameras takes an enormous amount of resources. White said. Equipping even a small department with cameras can cost several thousands of dollars. And there are additional costs in training, video storage and transfer, and so on. Police disagree over when they should be used. Some departments require officers to record video anytime they have contact with citizens. Other departments use cameras less often, such as when an officer believes he or she will issue a citation or is likely to make an arrest. White favors keeping cameras on whenever police interact with citizens. It 's difficult to predict when an encounter with a citizen could turn on a dime. The problem with continuous recording raises many privacy issues, for the public as well as for officers. For example, crime victims (especially victims of rape, abuse, and other sensitive crimes), as well as witnesses who are concerned about
References: Mims, Christopher. (Aug.18, 2014) What Happens When Police Officers Wear Body Cameras http://www.wsj.com/articles/what-happens-when-police-officers-wear-body-cameras- 1408320244 Ryman, Anne. & White, Michael. (January15, 2015) Police body cameras: 5 facts about the technology. http://www.aqcentral.com/story/news/local/arizona/2015/01/11/police-body-cameras-five-facts-technology/21616039/ Stanley, Jay. (Version published March 2015, original published October 2013). Police Body- Mounted Cameras: With Right Policies in Place, a Win for All. American Civil Liberties Union https://www.aclu.org/technology-and-liberty/police-body-mounted-cameras-right-policies-place-win-all