SoylentNews

takyon [soylentnews.org] writes:

The Associated Press reports that despite the rapid adoption of body cameras in major cities, policies do not typically require mandatory use of body cameras during uniformed "off-duty" side jobs [ap.org]:

When police officers in America's cities put on their uniforms and grab their weapons before moonlighting in security jobs at nightclubs, hospitals, and ballparks, there's one piece of equipment they often leave behind - their body camera. That's because most police agencies that make the cameras mandatory for patrol shifts don't require or won't allow body cameras for off-duty officers even if they're working in uniform, leaving a hole in policies designed to increase oversight and restore confidence in law enforcement.

Police departments contend that they have only a limited number of body cameras or that there are too many logistical hurdles and costs involved. But that argument doesn't sit well with those who say it shouldn't matter whether an officer is on patrol or moonlighting at a shopping mall. "As long as they have real bullets, they need to have the body cameras," said John Barnett, a civil rights leader in Charlotte, North Carolina, where shootings involving police have put use of the cameras under scrutiny.

An Associated Press survey of the 20 biggest U.S. cities found that nearly all have officers wearing or testing body cameras, but that only five - Houston; San Antonio; San Francisco; Fort Worth, Texas; and San Jose, California - have rules requiring them for uniformed officers working outside their regular hours.

Of course, even mandatory body camera policies are not perfect [khou.com]:

Houston's new Chief of Police Art Acevedo pledged to make some changes to the department's body-camera program after a KHOU investigation [khou.com] revealed it has fallen short of its promises. [...] "I want to make it very clear to our men and women that if they have a critical incident and they don't have that thing on, and without excuse or justification, they're going to have some significant consequences," Acevedo said.

That warning comes after KHOU 11 Investigates discovered several problems in the early months of HPD's body-camera program. The Harris County District Attorney's office identified more than 700 cases with missing or unaccounted body-camera video.

Original Submission