These duties are what all police officers are intended to do and serve for their communities, but from what the news has been reporting, that’s not always the case. It appears now that not all police officers, but some are basically doing the opposite of these duties, causing the public to lose trust with the people who are meant to provide safety in the first place. A 2015 report was conducted in San Diego, where civilians voted that when these body cameras were being worn, it helped to reduce the “personal body” force of officers by 46.5% (Kelsh). This is almost half of the people in San Diego who also believe that these cameras can help to not feel afraid to talk to an officer or ask for help, because they have these cameras that can essentially make or break their careers with doing the wrong action. There are even many studies in progress hoping to find some statistical evidence that these body cameras are worth it. For example, in Dallas, there is a six-month study going on in which researchers are monitoring one hundred officers who wear the cameras and one hundred who do not. They will then track the changes in the amount of complaints received about the officers, and conduct focus groups where people will voice how they were treated and felt around the officers wearing the cameras and the ones not wearing the cameras (Martin). This type of study is an excellent attempt at seeing just how successful these body cameras can be from first hand experiences and can generate some great results. Although it is upsetting that the public is fearful towards officers because of what has been reported lately, at least there are things trying to get
These duties are what all police officers are intended to do and serve for their communities, but from what the news has been reporting, that’s not always the case. It appears now that not all police officers, but some are basically doing the opposite of these duties, causing the public to lose trust with the people who are meant to provide safety in the first place. A 2015 report was conducted in San Diego, where civilians voted that when these body cameras were being worn, it helped to reduce the “personal body” force of officers by 46.5% (Kelsh). This is almost half of the people in San Diego who also believe that these cameras can help to not feel afraid to talk to an officer or ask for help, because they have these cameras that can essentially make or break their careers with doing the wrong action. There are even many studies in progress hoping to find some statistical evidence that these body cameras are worth it. For example, in Dallas, there is a six-month study going on in which researchers are monitoring one hundred officers who wear the cameras and one hundred who do not. They will then track the changes in the amount of complaints received about the officers, and conduct focus groups where people will voice how they were treated and felt around the officers wearing the cameras and the ones not wearing the cameras (Martin). This type of study is an excellent attempt at seeing just how successful these body cameras can be from first hand experiences and can generate some great results. Although it is upsetting that the public is fearful towards officers because of what has been reported lately, at least there are things trying to get