Law enforcement officers and agencies have a mandate of ensuring the safety of citizens and their interests. Their role is very demanding considering that they have a wide jurisdiction in addition to there being high expectations from the people they serve. In a bid to improve their effectiveness, law enforcers have resulted to use body-worn cameras as a surveillance tool. While body-worn cameras are heralded for their ability to provide real-time information on criminal activities, they are an invasion of privacy. The critics of body-worn cameras appear to be missing the bigger picture since, in as much as privacy is a constitutional right, the need for safety supersedes it. Citizens must instead support the use of body-worn cameras since they have proven to be beneficial in promoting effective policing.
Issue
The use of law enforcement cameras is a welcome move especially in an era of increased crime and the need for effective policing. These cameras are effective surveillance tools that not only promote officers’ safety but also enhance their efficiency in dealing with criminal situations. Chapman (2018) asserts that the public approval of the police behaviors, actions, and existence go along way in enhancing their ability to perform their duties. The adoption and use of Law enforcement cameras is one such police action that requires public approval. An insistence on the need to maintain one’s privacy as enshrined in the constitution points to a disproval, which could hamper law enforcers’ efficiency. Citizens have an obligation of supporting law enforcement agencies' decisions as long as they promote their safety and improve their well-being.
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Personal Argument
Law enforcement agencies exist to protect the interests of the citizens and in such a case, they must decide what is best for them. For a long time, citizens have been suspicious of law enforcement officers since they are associated with excessive use of force and brutality. The perception has created distrust, which has, in turn, bred strained relationships that hamper their working. The adoption and use of cameras could help to solve this problem since it would improve their effectiveness. The cameras allow police to be more aware of their environment and in this way, they get real-time information on criminal activities. Lum, Stoltz, Koper & Scherer (2018) assert that the cameras are an avenue for improving policy accountability, performance, and relationships with citizens. Improved performance and relations would translate to improved community policing which would, in turn, guarantee the safety of masses. Additionally, the cameras capture the police activity meaning that it would reduce their chances of excessive force. In a way, the cameras are tools for advancing justice for offenders something that would help to mend the citizen police relationships. Critics who claim that the cameras are an invasion of their privacy are hampering law enforcement officers’ efficiency. Critics need to weigh the benefits that the cameras present since they override the intrusion of their privacy.
Why Others Should Care
Law enforcement strategies should concern everybody as they all require feeling safe in their homes, workplaces, and everywhere they are. In this case, everybody is expected to support the police through cooperation to ensure that they are effective. Individuals must be open to changing their perceptions about the police and in particular the use of body-worn cameras. While the constitution guarantees the right to privacy, it is imperative to establish if it is more important than safety. Individuals must consider the benefits that are associated with law enforcement cameras and decide if they are worth pursuing. They should not be misled to think that the cameras are an intrusion to their privacy but rather an attempt to affirm this right by keeping them safe.
Supporting Personal Beliefs
Law enforcement cameras are necessary for combating criminal activities and enhancing the safety of officers and populations alike. These cameras have the capacity of helping officers to be more aware of their environment and get timely information. Real-time information allows the officers to deploy the requisite resources to mitigate the negative effects of criminal activities. According to Maskaly et al (2017), body-worn cameras help citizens to hold the police officers accountable for their actions something that allows for behavior modification. If the cameras can help change the perception that citizens have about police, then they should be the way to go.
Opposing Views and Opinions
Critics of law enforcement cameras believe that they are an invasion of privacy since the cameras record the interactions the police have with the public. These individuals fear that the police may fail to inform them that they are recording them thus denying them a chance to act accordingly. Thomas (2017) supports this argument by claiming that most law enforcement agencies with body camera systems do not have policies to curb their abuse. The lack of such policies means that the police could use the cameras to get information that is protected by the constitution.
Why Those Views are Wrong
The views regarding the possibility of the intrusion of one's privacy by the officers wielding law enforcement cameras are wrong since they cannot be substantiated. An insistence on personal privacy dilutes the effectiveness of the cameras by failing to see the benefits they yield. The police do not use body cameras to spy on citizens' private lives but rather understand their criminality levels. The privacy that is being guarded could be the key to rule out the individuals who may pose potential threats. In this case, the need to feel secure would supersede one’s constitutional right to privacy making the cameras a welcome addition to policing.
References
Chapman, B. (2018, November 4). Body-Worn cameras: What the evidence tells us . National Institute of Justice . https://nij.ojp.gov/topics/articles/body-worn-cameras-what-evidence-tells-us
Lum, C., Stoltz, M., Koper, C. S., Scherer, J. A. (2019). Research on body‐worn cameras: What we know, what we need to know. Criminology & Public Policy, 18 (1), 93-118. https://doi.org/10.1111/1745-9133.12412
Maskalay, J., Donner, C. M., Jennings, W. G., Ariel, B., & Sutherland, A. (2017). The effects of body-worn cameras (BWCs) on police and citizen outcomes: A state-of-the-art review. Policing: An International Journal of Police Strategies & Management, 40 (4), 672-688. DOI 10.1108/PIJPSM-03-2017-0032
Thomas, E. (2017). The privacy case for body cameras: The need for a privacy-centric approach to body camera policymaking. Columbia Journal of Law and Social Problems, 50 (2), 191-228.
