Body Cameras and POV

[MechAg94]

http://backwoodshome.com/blogs/MassadAyoob/2015/09/07/pov/

I saw this posted on Massad Ayoob's blog.  It is an interesting video on use of body cameras and how it can help show what an officer is seeing. 

[vaskidmark]

It also shows that body cameras will often be blocked by the wearer's hands, arms, whatever they are holding.  Positioning of the body camera does not just involve pinning to some part of your clothing.

Would Officer Wheeler have been "justified" in shooting the driver?  We'll never know, as all we saw was a gun laying on the seat.  Any furtive movement was obscured by the back of Officer Wheeler's Glock.

All I can tell you is that so far nobody has come up with a scheme that reduces all of the problems.

stay safe.

[KD5NRH]

All I can tell you is that so far nobody has come up with a scheme that reduces all of the problems.

Remove the eye on the non-dominant side and replace it with the camera.

Should also prevent cross-dominant shooting issues.

[vaskidmark]

See? ^^

A man who looks for the solution without being bothered by pesky little details.

I would like to subscribe to your newsletter.

stay safe.

[Devonai]

Replace some of the cop with robotics?  Intriguing... some sort of robo-cop, perhaps.

[Jamisjockey]

It's not a perfect solution, but a better one. There is much that the dashcam doesn't catch.

Police should be all for body cams.  It will be a tool for backing up their claims on the job, and protecting them from those who do claim police abuse when it's not there.

[Scout26]

Every cop that I know (and I know quite a few) is all for body cams.  Yes, they do have limitations, but they also go a long way in proving/disproving "He Said/She Said" events.

[RoadKingLarry]

Just my opinion but any cop that is against body cams is probably a dirty cop.

[cassandra and sara's daddy]

Many times, unions are opposed to some technologies for fear they will be used against the cops on minor stuff like sleeping on the job etc it's kind of sad

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G890A using Tapatalk

[MechAg94]

Many times, unions are opposed to some technologies for fear they will be used against the cops on minor stuff like sleeping on the job etc it's kind of sad

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G890A using Tapatalk

I can't say it hasn't happened. 

[lee n. field]

All I can tell you is that so far nobody has come up with a scheme that reduces all of the problems.

A cloud of small drones that go to ~10 feed and spread out.

[Jamisjockey]

They make a go pro drone dohickey that follows people......but it's got a very short battery life and is expensive.

[Doggy Daddy]

Replace some of the cop with robotics?  Intriguing... some sort of robo-cop, perhaps.

Mount a small camera in the middle of their foreheads.  Call 'em "Cycops".

[Regolith]

Mount a small camera in the middle of their foreheads.  Call 'em "Cycops".

[Perd Hapley]

Is that Mr. Chekov?

[Ben]

Is that Mr. Chekov?

https://youtu.be/mBup9Bvzaes

[Regolith]

Is that Mr. Chekov?

It's Walter Koenig, anyway...

[RoadKingLarry]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=47DfQcHMYLY

[lee n. field]

Is that Mr. Chekov?

The much more sinister Mr. Bester, from Babylon 5.  I'm sure Walter Koenig had a blast playing him.

[MechAg94]

A cloud of small drones that go to ~10 feed and spread out.

That might work down the road, but right now, body cameras are probably the next best upgrade over the car mounted cameras that is cheap enough most departments could afford it. 

Consider how much everyone seems to love to Monday morning quarterback all these incidents, more video and audio is probably a good thing. 

[KD5NRH]

A cloud of small drones that go to ~10 feed and spread out.

A pair of AC-130s with enhanced imaging systems circling overhead would be almost as good.

Besides, when you know your backup is a couple of 105s, you tend to try harder to deescalate any time your opponent is within pistol range.

[AJ Dual]

I can easily see a drone/quadcopter popping out of the lightbar, or a box on the roof of the cruiser to record, pepper spray, or tase someone, or explode a sticky-net over them... whatever.

Give it 10 years. The main limitations are sensors, image/navigation processing, and battery. The motors and ninja-batman flips and turn on a dime stuff is possible with hobby units now.

GPS is pretty good for roads and houses, X-26 Taser could just as easily be replaced with a "Sic 'em!" laser-pointer/designator. But it's not so good for stuff like power/telephone wires, doors and windows (if they're open or not) and trees etc. .mil or DARPA project could probably turn something out in a year, but at a price/size the police can afford, a decade.

[BryanP]

The much more sinister Mr. Bester, from Babylon 5.  I'm sure Walter Koenig had a blast playing him.
[/quote

He did.  I got to hear him talk about it once.  He really enjoyed playing that role.

[Firethorn]

Besides, when you know your backup is a couple of 105s, you tend to try harder to deescalate any time your opponent is within pistol range.

 

More seriously, I've seen enough studies to show that when cops have body cameras, everybody behaves better.  Reports of officer misconduct, justified and unjustified, go down.  Assaults against officers goes down, etc...

[KD5NRH]

More seriously, I've seen enough studies to show that when cops have body cameras, everybody behaves better.  Reports of officer misconduct, justified and unjustified, go down.  Assaults against officers goes down, etc...

It only takes about three brain cells to figure out that lying about something you know full well happened on camera isn't a great idea.

OTOH, I'm sort of fond of concealed cameras for just that reason; let them lie under oath, then nail them for the false statement.  Plus, not letting them know when they're being recorded means they won't know when they're not being recorded, so the problem doesn't resurface the day the cop forgets to wear his camera.