Posted on Oct 2, 2016
Police Cadet Turns in Cop for Turning Body Cam Off Just Before Pummeling his Victim
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There needs to be more officers doing the right thing & harsh consequences for on duty officers who turn off their body cam.
Police Cadet Turns in Cop for Turning Body Cam Off Just Before Pummeling his Victim
Posted from thefreethoughtproject.com
Police
Justice
Law Enforcement
Posted 8 y ago
Responses: 9
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SGT(P) Gloria Francis SSG (Join to see) As a former Deputy Sheriff and Criminal Investigator, before body cams became the norm, there are many times you don't want a camera recording what is happening. First of all, video recordings of activity are many times considered as evidence and those agencies are struggling with how to manage the large amount of video recordings they generate. This is a challenge for many agencies as they struggle with the costs associated with cameras, video storage and retrieval of images from storage. These costs mean that an agency may not be able to afford to hire new officers, which can have a detrimental affect on the community.
Secondly, as SSG Colwell said, many of the victims, witnesses and citizens who gave me information would not have been as forthcoming if they believed they were being recorded. It would have made my job much more difficult. Being available to speak with the citizens on your patrol area help reduce crime, but recording all those conversations would be counterproductive and most likely not occur. The situations where cameras are used should be limited, even though there may a few who abuse those policies.
Ultimately, the type of policing you receive in a community is based on many factors. Trust is hardest to earn and easiest to lose. Get involved with your local police agency and help them earn the trust of your community. By doing this, you help police the police before an incident happens. I highly recommend riding along with a police officer to see what the problems are from a different perspective.
Secondly, as SSG Colwell said, many of the victims, witnesses and citizens who gave me information would not have been as forthcoming if they believed they were being recorded. It would have made my job much more difficult. Being available to speak with the citizens on your patrol area help reduce crime, but recording all those conversations would be counterproductive and most likely not occur. The situations where cameras are used should be limited, even though there may a few who abuse those policies.
Ultimately, the type of policing you receive in a community is based on many factors. Trust is hardest to earn and easiest to lose. Get involved with your local police agency and help them earn the trust of your community. By doing this, you help police the police before an incident happens. I highly recommend riding along with a police officer to see what the problems are from a different perspective.
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MAJ (Join to see)
A1C Doug Towsley It sounds as though you had a no win situation. On this matter, I am not against recording and have used it many times as the situation called for it. On State level cases we always tried to record interviews, but on the federal side we were not allowed to record except for certain situations (I understand that this has possibly changed). I am against recording everything that occurs on a shift. At the end of the day, you need trained professional police officers, not drones.
Something I noticed while deployed and later back on the job was the notion infecting police administrators that they could control everything in the field from their headquarters or via radio and now video. Recordings give the illusion of control and only show the world through a fish eye lens. Recordings allow administrators to point and say, "It wasn't me, but ..." Unless an officer is wearing multiple cameras to catch every angle, some important information will not be seen.
After working and supervising more than 25 years in law enforcement at the state and federal level, I believe we need to spend more time letting police do their jobs. This doesn't mean letting them do anything they want, but rather to create trust between the police, their supervisors and administrators and especially the public that their police are trained professionals and will act as such.
Something I noticed while deployed and later back on the job was the notion infecting police administrators that they could control everything in the field from their headquarters or via radio and now video. Recordings give the illusion of control and only show the world through a fish eye lens. Recordings allow administrators to point and say, "It wasn't me, but ..." Unless an officer is wearing multiple cameras to catch every angle, some important information will not be seen.
After working and supervising more than 25 years in law enforcement at the state and federal level, I believe we need to spend more time letting police do their jobs. This doesn't mean letting them do anything they want, but rather to create trust between the police, their supervisors and administrators and especially the public that their police are trained professionals and will act as such.
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SSG (Join to see)
Candy Alkaabi - It's possible, however I'm not sure it's likely. It would be interesting to follow up and see how that officers career si progressing. I truly believe that most officers would be glad that bad officer is off the streets.
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Wow I hope there is no retaliation for what he did. Applaud him for doing the right thing.
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SMSgt Lawrence McCarter
What a horrible example to set for a Police Cadet ! If that doesn't say He planned to commit an assault and battery I din't know what does ! Seems that Police Officer served well only as a bad example on what not to do !
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