Body Cameras Controversy

It is virtually impossible nowadays for a person to watch the news without a new headline popping up that involves a police officer and an unarmed person who is shot and killed out of “self defense.” The increase in the number of deaths by law enforcement has sparked controversy throughout the United States, and has changed the way a majority of the public views “lawful” and “justified” police force. Because of the rising death rate, body-mounted police cameras have been the talk of the nation. Recently, the issue became so apparent that President Obama issued a proposal for 263 million dollars to be put toward new police training and body cameras throughout the country (Feeney). Various people believe that if officers were required to wear body cameras, fewer deaths would occur and more police officers would be held accountable for their actions. Police brutality has reached an all time high throughout the nation within the last few years. Although body cameras may seem like an …show more content…
They offer “an unbiased accurate record [of] what transpired” (Sommers 1312), and provide “transparency and a way to restore public trust in the police” (Sommers 1311). “The value of body cameras is that we’re able to see what the police are doing for once” (Bakst); this quote gives an idea of why so many Americans support the new body camera “wave,” and feel that the cameras “provide a check and balance against police power” (Stanley). Bill Bratton, the New York Police Department Police Commissioner, stated that during their pilot program “knowing [they] were being recorded affected [the officers] behavior in a good way,” and believes that “he or she felt like it was an additional protection for them” (Bruinius). Because of the improved behavior and increase in transparency during the pilot program, fewer complaints surfaced and “helped shed a light on ‘he said, she said’-like controversies”