Criminal Justice Technology

Section 1 

Similar to other industries, the criminal justice profession has recently experienced rapid technological changes due to the evolution of technology. Notably, law enforcers have established that, without access of up to date technology, curbing crime would almost become impossible. As technology used in committing crime activities has evolved, law enforcers have developed technology to fight the crime in order to protect human ( White, 2014) . Technology has become a critical factor when solving crimes. Some of the technologies that have been incorporated in the criminal justice community include thermal imaging, body cameras, biometrics, less-lethal weapons, gang intelligence systems, global positioning systems, automatic license plate recognition systems, and offender management systems among others ( White, 2014) . In today’s generation, equipment carried by law enforcement officers is different when compared to the one carried some years ago ( White, 2014) . In similar view, body cameras used by police officers have undergone significant technological evolution ( White, 2014) . This essay aims at discussing the criminal justice technology program of body cameras, and its use in crime exploration and prevention. 

Section 2 

Body-worn camera also known as body worn video or wearable cameras are wearable audio, video, or photographic recording devices worn by police officers as part of their uniforms, which they use to document the events that take place during performance of their duties. Body cameras often vary depending on the manufacturer and the price that they cost. All body cameras serve the same purpose despite slight differences. Mostly, they are worn on the area around the body torso of an officer’s uniform that is they are mounted on either the chest or the shoulder of a police, while others are worn on headgears of law enforcers ( White, 2014) . They are similar to other recording devices used by people, only that they are specifically designed to meet law enforcement requirements. They were developed for use in the collection of evidence at crime scenes. They serve both the law enforcement and public accountability, since they document misconduct of the police such as use of force ( White, 2014) . They are further used in the surveillance people whom the police interact with, making them easier to be used in investigations that require secret filming. Recent body cameras are much smaller and lighter when compared to initial wearable cameras ( White, 2014) . Manufacturers constantly come up with innovations to improve on the features of their body cameras. Most of the wearable body cameras usually consist of features that include of HD quality,infrared, divergent degrees of view, night vision, and fish-eye lenses. Innovations have led to the development of body cameras that contain of automatic triggers, for instance, cameras that begin recording once they sense an officer’s movement such as reaching out for a gun in the holster, opening of a door, the sound of a siren going off, turning on of lights, and a gunfire ( White, 2014) . This kind of camera use utilizes Bluetooth trigger options. In some wearable body cameras, video footages collected by are usually saved using time and date stamps, or GPS coordinates, while others offer real-time streaming ( White, 2014) . In addition, other body cameras provide 30 seconds of sound-free video footage. Unlike earlier, where videos had to be transferred from the cameras to the computers for saving, nowadays, video footages are automatically uploaded to the cloud while others are uploaded in external databases managed by police agencies or third party organizations ( White, 2014) . 

Section 3 

Wearable body cameras are usually used in the collection of video and audio footages of people. Body cameras comprises of a button that police officers double click for the camera to begin recording, a camera the size of a lipstick, that is attachable to the collar of the uniform or headgear by use of a secure magnet and an audio recorder used to capture sound. The camera usually has a slider that turns it on or off ( LI, 2014 ). They mostly capture the image of a person’s face, they are compatible with other technologies, and for instance, the images could be used for analysis using biometric technologies for face recognition ( LI, 2014 ).Wearable cameras have special systems that allow that data is stored or saved thus they are compatible with the GPS systems. They assist in reducing cases of assault against officers, and police use of force; hence, law enforcers are required to record video footage of cases such as when they are frisking members of the public, arresting a person, conducting car chases, and interviews ( LI, 2014 ). In an attempt to enhance police accountability, multiple ethical considerations have been put in place for body wear cameras, which involve of the privacy and public disclosure of the video footages. Policies have been put in place to limit public access of the video footages ( LI, 2014 ). Study has shown that wearable body cameras have assisted in the reduction of cases of conflict between law enforcers and members of the public. There has been a significant change on ways that police officers handle suspects. Video footages are used in courtrooms as evidence against law offenders ( LI, 2014 ). 

Most of the body-worn cameras are manufactured by Axon, formerly known as Taser. Axon offers free cameras and then charges the data storage services to police departments ( LI, 2014 ). Other vendors involved in the sale of body cameras include Black Mamba, Aventura, Brimtek, and Fly wire among others. Body worn cameras are not cheap to acquire, and most of the times, vendors offer their data storage services based on contract agreements ( Miller & Toliver, 2014) . High data storage and maintenance expenses due to the bulk data that is involved usually accompany body worn cameras. They usually require a lot of funds and resources from the manufacturing process, to their implementation and training ( Findlay, n.d.) . They also consume require plenty of funds during the update of the program especially in the replacement of obsolete technology. The investment on body worn cameras usually does not have return profits on the investment since it is used to change the behavior concept of policing and in the improvement of intelligence ( Findlay, n.d.) . The advantages of body worn cameras comprise of high speeds of data transmission. They further help in enhancing transparency and improving citizens, perspective of police legitimacy ( White, 2014) . They have resulted in an improved behavior for both law enforcement officers and members of the public. In addition, they have helped in enhancing the effectiveness of arrests by providing evidence used in arrest and prosecution of law offenders. On the other hand, the disadvantages if wearable body cameras include of creation of health concerns for police officers since they may result in neck injuries due to their weight and makes the police prone to electric shocks ( Findlay, n.d.) . Again, the program requires huge investment for purchase, storage, and training on how to use. Finally, they create concerns regarding the privacy of citizens and police officers. 

Section 4 

The technological approach of body cameras has been received with mixed reactions. In support of the program, it has been seen a huge impact on the law enforcers’ behavior while treating offenders ( Miller & Toliver, 2014) . It has particularly helped in improvement of police responsibility and accountability. However, recent research states that the program has not had significant impacts as many people expected it to have ( Miller & Toliver, 2014) . Findings have proved that wearable body camera has neither changed the behavior of officers nor citizens’ opinion towards the police. There has been less improvement in the relationship between citizens and law enforcers ( Miller & Toliver, 2014) . In order to improve on the impact of wearable body cameras, the program should be adopted and implemented by more agencies ( Miller &Toliver, 2014) . During the implementation of the body camera program there should be a number of considerations that must be observed. These comprise of privacy considerations that call for agencies to observe the effects of the technology on public’s privacy rights; determining when to record video footages that is officers require obtaining consent from a person before recording; data storage and retention policies that expects agencies to consider the cost and data integrity ( Miller & Toliver, 2014) . 

References 

White, M. D. (2014). Police Officer Body-Worn Cameras. Retrieved from http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/summary?doi=10.1.1.683.3623 

LI, S. (2014, August 25). The Big Picture: How Do Police Body Cameras Work? The Atlantic, 

Findlay, V. (n.d.). Quantifying, justifying cost of body-worn cameras. Retrieved from https://www.policefoundation.org/quantifying-justifying-cost-of-body-worn-cameras/ 

Miller, L., Toliver, J. (2014). Implementing a Body-Worn Camera Program Recommendations and Lessons Learned. Retrieved from https://www.policefoundation.org/quantifying-justifying-cost-of-body-worn-cameras/