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Police to Wear Ear-Cams to Record Arrests
Axon headcam (graphics: Taser International Inc.)
PoliceLink
November 04, 2009
The San Jose Police Department will be the first law enforcement agency in the nation to use new ear-mounted video and audio recorders on the streets.
The goal of the new device is to provide more details into arrests and other situations.
The department has ordered 72 of the cameras, which are built by Taser International, and plans to deploy them later this month. They will be used as part of a one-year pilot program.
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The cameras are designed to capture video from the point of view of the officer in the hope that they can assist in more accurate reports and provide a stronger defense if their actions are called in to question.
They can store up to 10 ½ hours before needing to be cleared. The video and audio can be played back in the field or downloaded to a computer for viewing and storage.
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San Jose Mayor Chuck Reed told reporters that the rules applied to current 911 tapes will also apply to the ear-cam recordings; the data can be requested but also held by the department if there are privacy concerns.
A police spokesman said the ear-mounted cameras might have been useful in the case of San Jose State University student Phuong Ho, who has accused officers of excessive force.
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handlinj
1 day ago
2 Comments
horrible idea, all this is doing is putting more stipulations on officers, anytime they do any little thing wrong it will be caught on tape. People in the criminal justice field are dealing with the scum of the universe and by making officers wear this it is just showing more and more that the higher ups are believing what the criminal says over the officers, you watch this is not made for our protection it is made to catch officers doing things wrong, for example, excessive force, which someitmes you just go into a situation you do not have time to thing ok i have to use this much force, you go into a situation with everything you got no matter the size or the gender of the perp.
Tact98
2 days ago
8 Comments
This seems like a good intention piece of equipment, but the reality is this will be one more way to poorly guage the essence of the situation between the officer and the citizen. Obviously the extreme incidents will fair well for the road cops, but all other daily incidents will create more distrust between the officer and the administration, and the citizen with the police, as second guessing becomes the practice. This also will open up a liability for depts. that have policies on courtesy toward citizens (again viewer perception determines who is at fault)
prophet911
9 days ago
110 Comments
Could be a good tool. I agree with MarlyB.Our prosecutors are always asking, "where's the video?" We are becoming too dependant on technology. What happens when the technology breaks? Are we going to be able to do our jobs? The scrutiny is put on us when our equipment breaks. We are just now getting our cameras working again in our cars. Some guys have gone 3 years without them. It was an admin issue, had nothing to do with us groundpounders, yet we bear the brunt of going w/o video in court. We tried cameras on our radio mics. Batteries sucked, yet another thing to worry about turning on when you should be watching the suspect.
All that said, I suppose it was only a matter of time before we got cameras on our bodies.
Either way, stay safe!!
delvic_25
10 days ago
234 Comments
... not appropriate use for politicians...LOL
delvic_25
10 days ago
234 Comments
that is an excellent development in law enforcement
Adladle
11 days ago
558 Comments
I hope this works because it would be extremely benificial. I know...I am stating the obvious.
Bravo68cty
11 days ago
26 Comments
Wow, this would be an amazing idea for every officer in the country to get one of these products. No more BS excessive force or sexual harassment complaints. Sounds like a good idea!
MarlyB
12 days ago
480 Comments
The medium is the message. This Three-Eyed Bot Cop look compromises the LEO's position in the public trust because it says the sworn officer's testimony is inadequate, must be corroborated by another method. What's next, limits imposed on the use of the power off option? A pre-programmed mouthpiece?
Will the scrutiny of a camera lens intimidate witnesses with whom the officer must establish quick rapport?
Goodboy
13 days ago
28 Comments
This is awesome. I want all LEO's to carry something like this. Not only will it help them prosecute offenders who lie, it will also help protect citizens against malicious or poorly-trained officers. This should also be part of the gear of any officer who has to perform crowd control functions at protests and rallies; it will help track down and prosecute vandals and rioters, legally protect officers that defend themselves from violent rioters, and will make sure that officers that beat peaceful protesters end up in prison where they belong.
Durability will be a MAJOR concern, though, as will the line "I forgot to activate it". Also the digital nature of the recordings will be a hot point as to the admissibility in court. Should be interesting to see how this pans out.
JoeRaider
13 days ago
234 Comments
Could they also issue them to politicians? I would be happy to pay with my tax dollars!!!
iHenry
13 days ago
168 Comments
I'm curious to see how durable they will be. One big problem I can see is the arm chair quarterbacks. When you have to make a decision in a split second but someone has hours to review the video to decide if your actions where proper... Well, I think you can see my point.
cutting_edge911
13 days ago
514 Comments
I think it's a good idea.
tgrady2
13 days ago
4 Comments
I THINK THIS WOULD BE A GOOD TOOL FOR COURT TESTIMONY, WHEN SUSPECTS LIE ON THE STAND TO GET OFF ON A CHARGE. DUI AND DRUG CHARGES AND WEAPON CHARGES, CONFESSIONS, BUT WILL THIS BE ADMISSABLE IN COURT, LOOK TO SEE, IF SO.
msdiva
13 days ago
742 Comments
Interesting... I can see the pros and cons of this
ATX_cop
14 days ago
4 Comments
Start thinking The Stallone movie Demolition Man, "The suspect is not responding to our commands...what should we do now?"