Body Cameras

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Policing a Democratic Society with Body Cameras
Since the beginning of policing history, there have been mishaps between police and citizens. Accidents happen as a result of human error, and sometimes they are not accidents at all. Police get shot and shot at on a daily basis around the United States, and occasionally, police shoot innocent victims. Other, more minor incidents happen, as well, such as resisting arrest and police brutality. Neither side is always innocent. For this reason, body cameras for police have been introduced. It is widely believed that having police wear body cameras will reduce the risk of harm for police and suspects. Body cameras for police have only recently become popular. In fact, in a survey conducted by the …show more content…
However, in light of recent events with high media coverage, more and more police departments around the United States have introduced body cameras to the force. There are many positive and negative aspects of the use of this new technology. Some concerns with body-camera usage include a large financial expense for police forces, privacy concerns, storage of evidence, diving into this new technology too fast, making officers second guess every choice they make, and whether or not the evidence collected by the cameras is usable in court. The pros of body cameras include improving behavior of police officers, providing a clearer picture than dash cameras, the unobstructed nature of body cameras, reducing complaints by civilians, and safety for the officer and the suspect. In the end, the positives of body-worn cameras for police outweigh the negatives, and officers should wear body cameras after lawful policies have …show more content…
One of these fears is whether or not the privacy of citizens will be protected. This is an important concern, because police officers often see citizens during their most vulnerable times. Before one can address this concern, it must be determined whether the state implementing body camera usage has a one-party consent law or a two-party consent law. A one-party consent law means that you must be part of the situation in order to record it. A two-party consent law means that all parties must consent to being recorded. However, most states with two-party consent laws exclude police officers, because one should assume that in the presence of an officer, who has the right to search and/or make an arrest, one must consent and follow the
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