Every day, our news screens are inundated with the latest "disturbing images" of police officers, Deputies, Marshals etc doing something that the public questions. Most of what we are seeing is from rudimentary, amateur footage shot from somebody's cell phone that does not always paint a clear picture. There is no better example of this right now than what we are seeing in Baltimore. The death of Freddie Gray is tragic, no matter what the circumstances are, and I am not trying to argue the particulars of the case. However, If we look back to April the 19, large news stations are eating up the amateur footage that was captured of Mr Gray's arrest. There seems to be two main videos that are circling. Both shot from a cell phone, and both by local bystanders. In both videos, the viewer can hear the commentary from the person viewing the encounter. Another thing that both of these videos have in common, is that neither of them start from the beginning of the incident. They both start when the situation has clearly esclated, and so paint a very one-sided story. If we had a video from either of the officer's perspective entailing the entire incident, there is no telling how much more peaceful the streets of Baltimore could possibly be today.
One Sided Stories
Imagine watching your favorite action or crime movie. Imagine that whole plot that you enjoy, so well written with developed characters so that you, the viewer, has a clear understanding of what is going on and why. Now imagine taking the most action packed scene, plotting a single camera somewhere nearby, maybe out of a window or through some railings to capture the action. None of the build up, no background information, just probably people getting killed or arrested for no apparent reason. Because we can't see the whole story, it is just a glimpse of what is occurring when the first person to get their camera out started recording. As consumers of mainstream media, we are generally given the video footage of the clip or pictures, and then we are blasted with banners about "Outrage" and "Justice" being demanded. Then, some other footage follows of someone grieving, or maybe some local protesters. Naturally, we align emotionally with what we are seeing. It is easy for the public to think, "Now the police are bad, they have gone crazy, I want justice!" We are being conditioned to get emotionally involved and make judgements based on that small clip that the news shows us.
Policing is changing, (whether you like it or not)
With many of these incidents being broadcasted on television recently, there is a seemingly unanimous cry from the public—and from politicians—to film a police officer's every move. I started my policing career nearly 10 years ago in London, England, and the idea back then of somebody filming me at work was not always met with any kind of pleasure, instead, I was almost indignant that someone saw fit to film me at work. Even when I knew I was doing nothing wrong, there is an old school mentality—even as I continue my policing career in the U.S—among cops that cameras "will get you fired" or "are nothing but trouble." Well, the thing is that that is not necessarily untrue. If you are not doing what you are supposed to do, and you are wearing a camera, it may well get you in to trouble, fired or worse, indicted.
But this is my counter argument to fellow officers: Times have changed. Hopefully none of us are naive enough to think that we are still policing in the early 2000's or 1990's. When you are going about your official duties, you need to know that every single person around you is a potential camera man/woman. If they are old enough to hold a phone, you can bet they can hold a camera, and they will.
Going back to what I said about the "full picture," this "film a cop" mentality is not going away. Technology is only going to make it easier to film, and until law enforcement gets a break from the spotlight, people will be only too eager to try to catch you messing up. A personally worn body camera is the only way I see us being able to paint fairer, fuller pictures for the public when we are scrutinized. I know as a cop that we don't want to fight people. We don't want to shoot people. But we are in a time now when public opinion will rest on a bystander's 20 second clip of you (God-forbid) having to shoot somebody. I will promise you that if you are following the law and local policy, wearing your own body camera, you will be eternally grateful. We owe it to ourselves and our profession to embrace body worn cameras.
Proud to Be a Movie Star
Many of us have always been told to go about our lives as if someone was watching. This applies now more than ever to us peace officers. We are, and should be proud of the job we do. If we are doing it correctly, we should not have to fear the repercussions of body worn cameras.
We do not need to change what we are doing, just help the public understand what we do, why we do it and how.
