In the past few months, the police have been in the spotlight for all the wrong reasons. With their supposed high-handedness on blacks and other non-whites, they have been subjected to heavy criticism for some of their action caught on tape. The following study seeks to show why police have become camera-shy while discharging their duties. The shooting of Michael Brown a young black man from Ferguson by a white police officer in Missouri led to the popular " Ferguson Effect " (Page, 2015). Shortly afterward, Eric Garner and Tamir Rice faced similar situations, and the videos of their shootings went viral on YouTube and other social media sites. Consequently, the " YouTube effect " as Page calls it damaged the reputation of the police force. Clearly, all these negative aspects related to the police have caused many officers to hold back from situations that may be appealing to the public. Consequently, crime rates have gone up because police avoid confrontations that may lead to violence. As seen by the public, it may feel great to intimidate a police officer. However, this has motivated more people to engage in criminal activities. In a recent report by Sandhu (2017), people fail to appreciate officers who risk their lives confronting armed suspects. He further shows that the death of a police officer in the line of duty is regarded as ‘normal' because nobody ever appreciates their efforts. Consequently, unappreciated police officers have stopped being honorable and zealous while on the job. Certainly, acts of violence against the innocent should be discouraged. However, some circumstances are unavoidable. As much as it hurts to hear, it is wrong to blame the entire police force because of the mistakes of a few police officers. Many police officers who work are intimidated, and afraid of being caught on camera. Although the fear of the cameras has helped restrain further innocent killings by the police, crime rates involving the public have increased. Such a problem should be addressed so that the police can feel safe while discharging their duties.
References
Page, C. (October 28, 2015). Are the police Now Camera Shy? Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 18 March 2017 from http://tribunecontentagency.com/article/are-police-turning-camera-shy/
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Sandhu, A. (2017). ‘I’m glad that was on camera’: a case study of police officers’ perceptions of cameras. Policing and Society: An International Journal of Research and Policy 1-13.
