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Body cams for police shine light on truthApr 29, 2013 (New Haven Register - McClatchy-Tribune Information Services via COMTEX) -- Body cams may well be the next big change in policing. A number of departments in the region have already started using them, and some chiefs say it's only a matter of time until every officer in the country is equipped with a camera. Advancement in technology and the lower cost that goes with it means officers can add to their gear lightweight cameras that will allow them to record their interactions with the public. "They are great tools for not only recording what you would expect, but they also seem to have great impact in ensuring civility during police interactions," said John DeCarlo, a University of New Haven associate professor of criminal justice and former Branford police chief. Hamden Police Chief Thomas Wydra said law enforcement agencies using the technology across the country have seen improvement in the behavior of both parties, police and public. "People behave more professionally, and they simply are more professional with each other," Wydra said. Wydra said his department has ordered 36 body cams that will be deployed in May. Branford Police Chief Kevin Halloran said his department has 22, which have been used in rotation by patrol officers for two years. Body cameras are being endorsed by many different police groups across the country. "I was very taken by the fact that the National Police Union met earlier this year and endorsed body cameras for police officers," New Haven Police Chief Dean Esserman said. "We are going to take a hard look at this piece of equipment." When dashboard cameras in patrol cars were first adopted decades ago, there was some resistance among the rank and file. "When dash cams came out it was never explained well," DeCarlo said. "Officers perceived it as big brother and mistrust from management." But, Wydra said, in a world where 90 percent of adults have a recording device in their pocket -- a cellphone or smartphone -- perceptions are changing. Some New Haven officers have purchased body cameras on their own, Esserman said. It's a stark contrast from a time when many officers were highly skeptical of dashboard cameras. "Years ago it was imposed on officers; now it seems many officers think it's in their best interest," he said. "I think the world has changed and people are much more comfortable with cameras than they used to be." In Branford, Halloran said body cameras have been embraced by his officers. "Now the attitude of the officers are, if there's a camera broken down, 'Well, I want a camera. I'm not going on the road without a camera,'" Halloran said. Esserman said he has met with union leaders and the department will begin experimenting with body cameras. "Having spoken to several police chiefs around the country, as well as Hamden and Yale police chiefs, we all agree that this is worth looking into further," Esserman said. "Accordingly, we are hosting a meeting in May where a camera company is coming to present a proposal for us to review." Esserman said he was thankful that New Haven, Yale and Hamden police departments have joined forces in the research. With the proliferation of smartphones, the recording of police encounters has gone on for many years, but, Wydra said, for the most part, it's been a "one sided conversation." With body cams, he said, officers can capture an entire encounter, instead of just the bits and pieces that bystanders might take with their phone. This more complete record could provide a context to police encounters that does not exist in videos the public uploads to YouTube. "I believe that the truth benefits the police officer," Esserman said. "The camera records the truth." One big benefit lauded by police chiefs is that footage can be a strong defense against frivolous civilian complaints. "To be accurate, since we implemented these cameras, I have not had a complaint that has been substantiated," said Halloran. "It's given the officers the confidence to display the good work that they do." But he was quick to add that this does not discount the existence of civil rights violations. He said these cameras can be a useful tool in disciplining officers. They also allow law enforcement agencies to record and review procedures. Halloran said video recordings are a powerful supplement to the reports that officers file, and, one day, video itself might become the bulk of the report. Video can record emotion in a way that even the most skilled writer cannot. Dash cams also came out at a time when video equipment was much more expensive, DeCarlo said. Body cameras are smaller and cheaper, and most of the cost comes from the backend for transmitting and storing footage. But many questions still remain. Branford has taken an in-house route to storing the data recorded by body cams. Using their own database, a senior officer downloads and logs the video, at a cost in both labor and in maintaining the database. Hamden will be employing a proprietary service provided with the Taser brand body cameras they purchased. This system is, in essence, one stop shopping for officers using the equipment. At the end of a shift, they plug in their cams to charge, and video is automatically uploaded to a cloud server maintained by Amazon.com and run by Taser International. This service makes the process of storing videos -- which Wydra said will be stored for 30 days unless otherwise determined -- much easier for its officers. The cost of using the service is $1,000 per camera per year, which Wydra said is still cheaper than the local department maintaining its own database. As it is perfectly legal for a citizen to record a police officer in a public setting, so too is it legal for an officer to record a citizen in a public setting. Wydra said this is not a major concern, but privacy is. "We do respect people's privacy. That is obviously very much a big part of the 4th Amendment to the Constitution, but a police officer who is legitimately in a place, whether it's in a private residence or if it's in public place, has the right to engage in audio or video recording," Wydra said. "Obviously, it's a fine line between a situation where an officer is taking a routine complaint of a person in a home, and if the person is reluctant to do that, while under video, they'll have to be some consideration for shutting the device down. We are very sensitive to our citizens' reasonable expectation to privacy," he said. ___ (c)2013 the New Haven Register (New Haven, Conn.) Visit the New Haven Register (New Haven, Conn.) at www.nhregister.com Distributed by MCT Information Services |