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Police body camera use in the United States
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Police body-worn cameras are "small video cameras—typically attached to an officer's clothing, helmet, or sunglasses—that can capture, from an officer's point of view, video and audio recordings of activities, including traffic stops, arrests, searches, interrogations, and critical incidents such as officer-involved shootings," according to the U.S. Department of Justice.[1] Proponents argue that police body camera programs increase police accountability, thereby strengthening the public trust. Proponents in law enforcement also say that body cameras are helpful in evidence collection and protection. Opponents argue that these programs pose risks to individual privacy, may hamper the efforts of law enforcement, and are costly.[1][2]
Background
History
On August 9, 2014, Michael Brown, an 18-year-old resident of Ferguson, Missouri, was shot and killed by police officer Darren Wilson. At about noon on that day, Wilson observed Brown and a friend on the street. Noting that Brown matched the description of a suspect in a convenience store robbery, Wilson asked the two men to move to the sidewalk. An altercation reportedly ensued between Wilson and Brown. Ultimately, Wilson fired upon Brown, who was unarmed. Brown did not survive.[6]
According to the Washington Post, the events in Ferguson led to expanded use of police body-worn cameras. On December 2, 2014, President Barack Obama (D) proposed that the federal government reimburse localities half the cost of implementing body-worn camera programs. On September 21, 2015, Attorney General Loretta Lynch announced that the United States Department of Justice had disbursed $23.2 million in grants "to expand the use of body-worn cameras and explore their impact." The grants were given to 73 local agencies in 32 states.[4][7]
According to the Washington Post, "Only a few dozen departments, most of them small" had implemented body-worn camera programs before 2014. In the aftermath of the shooting in Ferguson, Washington, D.C., New York, and Los Angeles commenced pilot programs.[4]
Usage
In 2016, 47 percent "of the 15,328 general-purpose law enforcement agencies in the United States had acquired body-worn cameras (BWCs)," according to the U.S. Department of Justice's Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS).[3]
Support and opposition
Arguments supporting body-worn cameras
Proponents argue that police body-worn cameras are "useful for documenting evidence; officer training; preventing and resolving complaints brought by members of the public; and strengthening police transparency, performance, and accountability."[1] Jay Stanley, a policy analyst for the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), wrote the following in a March 2015 policy paper regarding the use of police body-worn cameras:[8]
| “ | Although we at the ACLU generally take a dim view of the proliferation of surveillance cameras in American life, police on-body cameras are different because of their potential to serve as a check against the abuse of power by police officers. Historically, there was no documentary evidence of most encounters between police officers and the public, and due to the volatile nature of those encounters, this often resulted in radically divergent accounts of incidents. Cameras have the potential to be a win-win, helping protect the public against police misconduct, and at the same time helping protect police against false accusations of abuse.[9] | ” |
| —Jay Stanley | ||
Additionally, a study conducted by George Mason found that police officers said the cameras were helpful when collecting evidence and for protecting themselves. "Officers and citizens both seem to believe that BWCs can protect them from each other," the study said.[2]
Arguments opposing body-worn cameras
Opponents argue that body-worn camera programs may make it more difficult for police officers to perform their duties. Boston police commissioner William Evans argued, "I fear that a lot of people, and the dialogue we have going, a lot of people might not want to have that interaction with us if they knew they're on camera or they're being recorded."[10]
Opponents also argue that the implementation of body-worn camera programs poses a risk to individual privacy, as footage from the cameras can sometimes be subject to public inspection. Matt Pearce wrote the following for the Los Angeles Times in September 2014:[11]
| “ | Video from dashboard cameras in police cars, a more widely used technology, has long been exploited for entertainment purposes. Internet users have posted dash-cam videos of arrests of naked women to YouTube, and TMZ sometimes obtains police videos of athletes and celebrities during minor or embarrassing traffic stops, turning officers into unwitting paparazzi. Officers wearing body cameras could extend that public eye into living rooms or bedrooms, should a call require them to enter a private home.[9] | ” |
| —Matt Pearce | ||
Additionally, opponents argue that the cost of outfitting officers with body cameras is not fiscally possible for every police department. In 2018, after the Kansas State Senate considered a bill that would have required officers to wear body cameras, state Sen. Rick Wilborn (R) said in an interview that smaller cities would likely have a difficult time complying with the requirement if it became law. He said, "We try to be understanding, especially with smaller counties. You can’t mandate something that’s onerous to the point of breaking a budget."[2]
Public opinion
Polls
An Economist/YouGov poll conducted in April 2015 found that 88 percent of respondents in the U.S. supported proposals requiring police officers to wear body cameras. The graphics below break down these results by age, race, and political ideology.[12][13]
Reports on body camera usage in the cities
Police body-worn camera policies by city, 2017
In November 2017, the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights released a report scoring body-worn camera programs in 75 police departments.[14]
The report scored programs on eight criteria, evaluating each department on whether it did the following:[14]
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The table below summarizes the report's findings. "Yes" indicates that a department's program fully met the criterion. "No" indicates that a program did not meet the criterion. "Partially" indicates that a program partially met the criterion. The table includes information about body-worn cameras in 57 of the 100 largest cities in the United States; for the complete findings, see the full report.
Police body-worn camera policies by city, 2015
In November 2015, the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights released a report scoring body-worn camera programs in 25 police departments. According to the report, "[Police departments] are moving quickly to deploy body-worn cameras, and are experimenting with a wide range of policies in each of the dimensions we studied. Departments that have a strong policy in one area often falter in another–every department has room to improve. At the same time, we are pleased to find examples of strong policy language currently in use for nearly all of our criteria."[15]
The report scored programs on eight criteria, evaluating each department on whether it did the following:[15]
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The table below summarizes the report's findings. A green check mark indicates that a department's program fully met the criterion. A red cross indicates that a program did not meet the criterion. A gray dash indicates that a program partially met the criterion. The 10 largest departments addressed in the report are included in the table below; for the complete findings, see the full report.[15]
| Police body-worn camera policies, November 2015 | ||||||||
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| Department | Policy available | Officer discretion | Personal privacy | Office review | Footage retention | Footage misuse | Footage access | Biometric use |
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See also
- Federal policy on crime and justice, 2017-2020
- Changes to policing policy in the states and 100 largest cities, 2020
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 U.S. Department of Justice, Community Oriented Policing Services; Policy Executive Research Forum, "Implementing a Body-Worn Camera Program: Recommendations and Lessons Learned," accessed 2014 Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; name "report" defined multiple times with different content - ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 The Pew Charitable Trusts, "Body Cameras May Not Be the Easy Answer Everyone Was Looking For," January 14, 2020
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statistics, "Body-Worn Cameras in Law Enforcement Agencies, 2016," November 2018
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 The Washington Post, "Issues over police shooting in Ferguson lead push for officers and body cameras," December 2, 2014
- ↑ YouGov, "Unlike Ferguson, the shooting of Walter Scott finds racial agreement," April 15, 2015
- ↑ The New York Times, "What Happened in Ferguson?" August 10, 2015
- ↑ United States Department of Justice, "Justice Department Awards over $23 Million in Funding for Body Worn Camera Pilot Program to Support Law Enforcement Agencies in 32 States," September 21, 2015
- ↑ American Civil Liberties Union, "Police Body-Mounted Cameras: With Right Policies In Place, A Win For All," updated March 2015
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 9.3 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ PoliceOne.com, "Boston brass, police union fear body cams on cops," December 3, 2014
- ↑ The Los Angeles Times, "Growing use of police body cameras raises privacy concerns," September 27, 2014
- ↑ YouGov, "Unlike Ferguson, the shooting of Walter Scott finds racial agreement," April 15, 2015
- ↑ YouGov, "The Economist/YouGov Poll, April 11-13, 2015," accessed April 10, 2016
- ↑ 14.0 14.1 Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, "Police Body Worn Cameras: A Policy Scorecard," November 2017
- ↑ 15.0 15.1 15.2 The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, "Police Body Worn Cameras: A Policy Scorecard," November 2015
