I’m at 1:45 in this report that aired on WOAI (San Antonio), Fox 45 Baltimore, and other Sinclair Broadcasting stations nationwide, with accompanying article. See Nick Gillespie in Time, also linked yesterday; earlier on police cameras here, etc.
P.S. Don’t underestimate the data security issues.
2 Comments
I believe they should but the footage should be carefully handled. Sometimes they end up in situations where people would have some right to privacy. If they are recording inside someone’s home and the footage isn’t needed as evidence of any crime, it should not be stored indefinitely.
Let me give you my perspective as a prosecutor. A few years ago I would have said that it’s a nice idea but impractical due to the cost considerations. Today it is a nice idea that is doable for a department with a decent budget. Within a couple years it is going to be considered mandatory. Cameras are getting better and cheaper all the time. More importantly, data storage is getting cheaper even faster. There are enormous record retention issues so there have to be decisions made on how long video is kept if there is no immediate evidentiary need.
The body cameras will protect the police and citizens. We will quickly get to the point that a police officer is a sensor platform.