https://cdn.pixabay.com/photo/2015/06/01/19/56/bodyworn-794101_1280.jpg A growing number of police departments, *more than 95 percent of them*, around the US today have been increasingly turning to adopting body camera technology for their officers on duty. ### It's not just the people themselves who have seemingly grown more comfortable with pulling out their phone and getting the camera rolling when they see an officer engaged in questionable behavior. Departments are hoping that the body camera can help to keep a record so that communities can feel like there is more accurate oversight taking place. And in some instances where they have introduced the cameras, complaints have been drastically cut (sometimes as much as 90+ percent) against officers and their department. The hope is that for officers who know that they might be watched via the camera, that hopefully they will act more professional. However, cameras have still been able to be tampered with and officers have been able to turn them off. As well, other reports have found that officers might be just as likely to get violent when they have the camera rolling, than when they don't. And not only that, but another analysis of the cameras has also indicated that officers might be more prone to assaults if they wear the camera. https://i1.wp.com/www.mercurynews.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/bodycam_view.gif?w=620&crop=0%2C0px%2C100%2C9999px For the most part, researchers suggest that the cameras might not be having as great an effect on keeping officers from abusing their authority as some thought they might. According to one study that analyzed officers in Washington who had been wearing the cameras, they were about as likely to have complaints logged against them as officers who hadn't been wearing cameras. But that hasn't been the case everywhere, in places like California it was reported that the cameras contributed to a drastic decline in complaints against officers. ## Along with the concerns over whether or not the cameras are effective, there is also the worry for privacy concerns. http://www.americasquarterly.org/sites/default/files/FINAL01%20625x415.jpg http://www.americasquarterly.org/sites/default/files/FINAL02%20625x415.jpg Where is the footage going to end up that these officers collect while they are entering people's private residences and other areas? Who is going to have access to the footage and so on? Is there a potential for that footage to be hacked? And some circumstances when officers might not be able to keep the cameras rolling is whenever there might be a child or sexual assault victim being interviewed, if people *have any religious or cultural objections to the filming*, or if officers are going to be entering a house without a warrant and there isn't *any crime nor emergency in progress at that time*. # A Hefty Cost... The body camera program has cost taxpayers millions of dollars and there is also a hefty cost that comes along with video management services for that data, costs for support staff, and more. For Seattle alone for example, it's estimated that the camera program will cost them more than $1.4 million. As well, the cameras don't catch all of the activity mind you. There could still be issues with accountability seeing as the cameras cannot encapsulate the officer's perception exactly as it is. In other words, there could be times when something takes place that might seem threatening to the officer etc, that the camera doesn't capture and therefore cannot corroborate. According to the president of the Seattle Police Officers Guild, Kevin Stuckey, the union has launched a labor complaint with the Public Employment Relations Commission in the state and they are suggesting that the body cameras for officers need to be negotiated so that specific scenarios can be discussed. Human rights groups and civil liberties advocates have for quite some time now strongly urged caution when it comes to officers adopting the body camera technology. They have repeatedly suggested that we should look to sharply limit the use of such biometric technology. The cameras might have been marketed as some sort of quick-fix for police accountability, but solving the issue isn't going to be that simple. Pics: Pixabay via mercurynews.com Wesley B. Edrosian via americasquarterly.org Sources: http://www.kiro7.com/news/local/millions-of-dollars-privacy-concerns-surround-seattle-police-department-body-camera-program/692859188 http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-37502136 https://techcrunch.com/2016/10/03/police-complaints-drop-93-percent-after-deploying-body-cameras/ https://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/nov/04/california-police-body-cameras-cuts-violence-complaints-rialto https://gizmodo.com/cops-wearing-body-cameras-are-more-likely-to-be-assault-1777104650 http://www.chicagotribune.com/la-me-ln-lapd-body-cameras-20150331-story.html https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/public-safety/baltimore-police-officer-who-turned-off-body-camera-charged-with-tampering-with-evidence/2018/01/24/6c6700ae-015b-11e8-bb03-722769454f82_story.html https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/public-safety/police-body-camera-study-finds-complaints-against-officers-did-not-drop/2017/10/20/4ff35838-b42f-11e7-9e58-e6288544af98_story.html https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/20/us/police-body-camera-study.html ## Related Posts: ### Filming The Police In Public https://steemit.com/government/@doitvoluntarily/filming-the-police-in-public ### Police Officer Attacks Paramedic For Questioning His Use Of Force https://steemit.com/news/@doitvoluntarily/police-officer-attacks-paramedic-for-questioning-his-use-of-force ### The World's Very First Operational Robot Police Officer https://steemit.com/technology/@doitvoluntarily/the-world-s-very-first-operational-robot-police-officer ### Federal Lawsuit Launched Against Michigan Police Over 'Thug-Like' Conduct https://steemit.com/police/@doitvoluntarily/federal-lawsuit-launched-against-michigan-police-over-thug-like-conduct ### Vigilante Groups Competing With Police To Catch Child Predators https://steemit.com/news/@doitvoluntarily/vigilante-groups-competing-with-police-to-catch-child-predators