Twin Cities Daily Planet (https://www.tcdailyplanet.net/tag/body-cameras/)
“Band aid on a bullet wound…” That’s how one woman described the proposal for MPD body cameras at a community meeting last week in South Minneapolis. While some see cameras as progress, the long-running problem of police accountability has no easy solutions. Continue Reading
Whether or not they care to admit it, I am positive that every student, professor and community member has an opinion on body cameras for police officers. Perhaps a body camera would have been useful in the shooting of Michael Brown in Ferguson this past summer. But while body cameras are certainly useful in situations like Brown’s, they also reward the police officers who are doing a good job. Therefore, I am glad that many police departments are moving toward using them. Having cameras available for law enforcement officers is important for several reasons. First, it enables their superiors to determine whether the officers are doing their jobs well. Most importantly, the use of cameras will help the fight to end racial injustice. A report by the Washington Post found that in three-quarters of fatal shooting cases since 2005, the police officers were white, and two-thirds of officers’ victims were black. Prosecutors won’t press charges against officers unless there is a substantial amount of evidence. Continue Reading