The ongoing debate about police wearing body cameras is, once again, upon us.
The overriding question seems to be, would the use of body cameras reduce the number of use-of-force cases?
The short answer is, we just don’t know.
Kevin Walby, an associate criminal justice professor at the University of Manitoba, has studied the issue extensively.
Walby says that studies and pilot projects across North America show mixed results, but he indicates that there is very little proof that use-of-force cases were significantly reduced when body cameras were employed.
Kevin Bryan, a retired police officer who now teaches at Seneca College, sees some benefits to using body cameras, but he raises some valid questions: who gets the cameras? Only uniformed officers? Controversial issues can arise involving plainclothes officers as well.
Would the cameras be active at all times? Some legal experts suggest that could be a violation of privacy rights.
But the biggest concern is the price. The cost of the hardware and data storage can run into the millions of dollars, raising the age-old question: who’s going to pay for this stuff?
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So, let’s have the debate, but let’s be smart about it.
As Walby asked, why would we invest millions of dollars into something that doesn’t really work?
Bill Kelly is the host of the Bill Kelly Show on Global News Radio 900 CHML.
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