Reference no: EM132195996

150 WORDS agree or disagree to this

Dr. Beshears and Class-

To start things off, I took a couple excerpts from a field experiment which states: "The promise of body-worn cameras (BWC) is that they might improve officer and citizen behavior given the possibility of retrospective and independent determinations of the appropriateness of behaviors which occur within police-citizen encounters. The emerging evidence is generally promising; however, the overall Body Worn Camera determination is incomplete."

Additionally, "The nature of this unrest is not unlike that which was experienced in the 60s and 70s, which led to the development and widespread use of Community- and Problem-oriented Policing to address persistent community problems. However, the response to today's discontent has centered much more on the use of technology" (Headley, Guerette, & Shariati, 2017).

Given the aforementioned excerpts, it is safe to say that BWC's are here to stay. Given my career in law enforcement and daily use of the BWC's, I can say it is just another tool. In my opinion, the most affected by the implementation of BWC's, are senior officers in the law enforcement communities.

The learning curve for said officers is extensive, not only do they have to learn new technology, but they have to curb previously questioned techniques and practices. With the advancement of technology and previous issues of tampered evidence, BWC's provide much-needed police prospective to incidents.

While BWC's bring a level of transparency to appease the general public, they also provide clarity to situations senior leaders can address with their personnel. BWC's may be viewed as an invasion of privacy by some sworn personnel, however, the overall consensus that I have encountered is a welcoming one.

With the introduction of BWC's, so has the level and variance of trainings. BWC's have assisted agencies not only as an additional perspective to incidents but also as a valuable training aid.

While the introduction of BWC's is a new perspective, it is believed to assist with curbing illicit activity by sworn members as well as holding senior leaders responsible.

I also believe with the introduction and continued use of BWC's, there will be clarity provided to staff and administrations regarding personnel management and lack of personnel responding to calls.

Resources:

Headley, A., Guerette, R., & Shariati, A. (2017). A field experiment of the impact of body-worn cameras (BWCs) on police officer behavior and perceptions. Journal of Criminal Justice, 53, 102-109.