CST373:EDebateProposal

UsingTechnologytoCounterPoliceMistrust
CaliforniaStateUniversity,MontereyBay
SchoolofComputingandDesign
CST373:EthicsinCommunicationandTechnology
Fall2016

EDebateProposal
KevinBrock
RichardCiampa
LyndseyCraig
SalvadorHernandez
AimeKelso

CST373:EDebateProposal

TheProblem
Lawenforcementisreveredasoneofthemostnobleandselflessoccupationsinsociety.
Everyday,officerstakerisksandsufferinconveniences[inorder]toprotectlives,defendcivil
liberties,[and]securethesafetyoffellowcitizens(WhatistheLawEnforcementOathof
Honor?,n.d.).Thisundertakingisalmostentirelyonthebehalfoftotalstrangers.Furthermore,
atthebeginningofhisorhercareer,everyofficertakestheLawEnforcementOathofHonor,a
pledgetoupholdastandardofethical,andhonorablebehavior.Theoathgoesasfollows:On
myhonor,Iwillneverbetraymybadge,myintegrity,mycharacter,orthepublictrust.Iwill
alwayshavethecouragetoholdmyselfandothersaccountableforouractions.Iwillalways
upholdtheConstitution,mycommunity,andtheagencyIserve(WhatistheLawEnforcement
OathofHonor?,n.d.).Unfortunately,therearemanywhobetraythispromiseand,overtime,
storiesofpolicebrutalityandmisconducthavebecomerelativelycommon.This,inturn,has
leadtoincreasingmistrustoflawenforcement.Inrecentyears,citizenshavecapitalizedon
technologyinanefforttodetermisconduct,andholdlawenforcementaccountablefortheir
actions.Theissueathand,however,iswhetherornottheuseoftechnologycanpreventofficers
fromabusingtheirauthority,andrestorecommunitytrustinlocallawenforcement.

Historical/LegalContext
Historically,therearetwoeventsthatinitializedtheuseofaudioandvideorecording
technologybylawenforcementagenciesthebeatingofRodneyGlenKingIII,andthefatal
shootingofOscarGrantIII.ThefirsteventtookplaceonSunday,March3rd,1991when
bystanderGeorgeHollidayvideotapedLosAngelespoliceofficersbeatingRodneyGlenKingIII

CST373:EDebateProposal

afteracarchase.HollidayprovidedhisvideotolocalLosAngelestelevisionbroadcasterKTLA
(Linder,2001).Thefollowingday,thefootagewasbroadcastacrossthenation.Itwasoneofthe
earliestoccurrencesinwhichcitizenswereabletowitnessadirectviolationofconductatthe
handsoflawenforcement.Thebeatingimmediatelybecameoneofthemostvisibleusesof
forcebypolicein[American]historyandputtheissueofpolicebrutalityonthenationalagenda
(Mydans,1992).Followingthebeating,fourLAPDofficerswerechargedwithassaultwitha
deadlyweapon,anduseofexcessiveforce.Itwasthefirsttimethatanexcessiveforcecase
involvingminoritiesgarneredwidespreadpublicity,andresultedinofficersbeingputontrial.
However,theofficerswerelateracquitted,whichtriggeredastringofviolentriots.
The1992LosAngelesriotslastedapproximatelythreedays,andamountedinonebillion
dollarsofpropertydamage.Bytheend,anestimated4,000buildingshadbeenburned,7,000
peoplearrested,55killed,andnearly2,000injured(RiotsEruptinLosAngeles,n.d.).
Ultimately,theacquittalsandtheriotsledtothefederalgovernmentobtaininggrandjury
indictmentsforviolationsofRodneyKing'scivilrights.ThefederaltrialtookplaceonFebruary
25th,1993,andresultedintwooftheofficersbeingconvictedandimprisonedforunreasonable
useofforce.Theothertwoofficerswere,again,acquitted(ATimelineofEventsinRodney
KingsLife,2012).Nevertheless,GeorgeHollidaysvideoprovidedcrucialevidencewhichnot
onlybroughtaboutconvictionsformisconduct,butsetnewstandardsformonitoringpolice
officersingeneral.Followingthecase,theLAPDwasforcedtoaddremoteaudiorecordings
fromofficerradiostosquadcardashcameras.Thefederalgovernmentalsorequiredthatevery
encounterbetweenofficerandcivilianberecordedwhenofficerswereassignedtosquadcars
outfittedwiththeenhancedaudioandvideodevices.Theaudiorecordingsstartedautomatically

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uponactivationofthesquadcarlightsandsiren,andlaterversionsofthissystemallowedremote
activationoftheaudiorecordingsystem.
Thesecondevent,whichleadtotheestablishmentofaudioandvideorecording

technology,tookplaceonJanuary1st,2009.BayAreaRapidTransit(BART)officerJohannes

Mehserlefiredhisservicepistolatpointblankrange,fatallywoundingOscarGrantIII.
Accordingtoauthorities,Grantandhisfriendswereinvolvedinanargumentwithanother
individualonboardtheDublinPleasantonboundBARTtrainwhenthetrainoperatorsummoned
lawenforcementassistancetoremovethepartiesinvolved(OscarGrant,2008).Grantwas
shotinthebackwhilebeingrestrainedbyMehserlespartner,anddiedwhilebeingtransported
tothehospital.Theincidentwasrecordedbyseveralpassengerswaitingatthestation,andthe
footagewaswidelydisseminatedthroughmultipletelevisionchannels,andonlinepostings
(OscarGrant,2008).Theshootingprovokedapublicoutcrywhichresultedinrebellionsand
protests.Mehserlewaslaterconvictedofinvoluntarymanslaughter(MacAskill,2010).
Severalsocietal,economic,andtechnologicalfactorsthathaveaffectedtheuseofpolice
bodycameras.Technologicalfactors,likecellphoneshavecontinuallyprovidedameansfor
documentingandprovidinganunbiasedviewofpoliceandcivilianinteractions.Further
advancementshaveleadtosmartphonescapableofproducingqualityphoto,audio,andvideo
recording.Smartphonesarestillaviableresourcetoday.Additionally,theabilitytomake
camerassmaller,lighter,andmoreefficienthasleadtoadrasticdeclineinthecostofwearable
personalvideorecorders(PVR).Currently,PVRproductssimilartoonesusedbylaw
enforcementcanbepurchasedonAmazon.comfromanywherebetween$180.00to$300.00.
However,withtheseadvancementshavecomenewchallenges.Amongwhichareownership

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rightsoftherecordedvideos,publicdispersionofsaidvideos,andpenalcodeusageonbehalfof
lawenforcementofficers(forinstance,sitingobstructionofjusticewhendealingwith
bystanderswhorecordencounters).

Stakeholders
Thereareseveralproponentsofbodycamerausage.Expansiveuseofbodycameras
appears,onbalance,tobegoodpolicy.Ithasoverwhelmingsupportfromeverystakeholderin
thecontroversythepublic,theWhiteHouse,federallegislators,policeofficials,policeunions,
andtheAmericanCivilLibertiesUnion(Wasserman,2015).Thosemostdirectlyaffectedare
(arguably)thepublic,whowouldbenefitfromadefinitivemeansofholdinglawenforcement
accountablefortheiractions,andthepoliceofficersthemselves.Bodycameraswouldbenefit
officersbydocumentingcitizenswhoactaggressivelytowardsthem.Notonlywillbodycameras
helpofficersfightthetemptationtobullypeople[...],theywillalsohelp[them]fightthe
inevitable[false]criesofbrutalityandracism(Martin,2015).Camerafootagecanpotentially
saveanofficersreputationfrombeingdamaged.Furthermore,governmentbodies,suchas
federallegislators,theDepartmentofJustice,andothersuchentitieshavestakeinthisissue.
Legislators,andtheDepartmentofJusticemaybeinvolvedinaspectsofpolicymakingand
proceduresbywhichtoimplementthecameras,andwhereandhowtostorethefootage,aswell
asfundingforthecameras.Regardlessoftheindividualstakeholder,itisclearthatbody
camerasareapowerfulandindiscriminatetechnology[whose]proliferationoverthenextdecade
willinevitablychangethenatureofpolicinginunexpectedways(ConsideringPoliceBody
Cameras,2015).

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CompetitiveAnalysis
Theriseofsocialmediahasmaderapidlydiffusinginformationvirtuallyeffortless.
Picturesandvideoscanbesharedatthemereclickofabutton.Butwhathappenswhenthe
peopledontgettouploadtheirmediabeforetheirphone/videorecorderisconfiscated?The
mostcommonformofevidencedisclosedonthenewsandontheinternetaretestimoniesand
videosprovidedbybystanders.Policedashboardfootageisalsoanasset,thoughitprovidesa
limitedangleandiseasilyobstructedbyenvironmentalfactors(buildings,othervehicles,etc.).
Anofficertestimonycanoftenholdsubstantiallymorevaluethanthatofanaveragecitizen.This
iswhyitisimportanttohavevideoevidencetosupportclaims.Itisalsoimportanttounderstand
whenitisappropriatetofilmandphotographlawenforcement.TheAmericanCivilLiberties
Union(ACLU)statesthattakingphotographsandvideoinpublicspacesisallowable,solongas
longastheindividualrecordingdoesnotinterferewiththeofficer(ACLU,2016).This,however,
thisdoesnotaccountforabuseofauthorityonbehalfoflawenforcementofficerswhocan
harass,detain,andarrestindividualsrecordingpublicpoliceactivities.Attimes,officers
confiscateindividualssmartphonesinanattempttopreventthefootagefrombeingreleased.
OnesolutiontothisproblemisamobileappcreatedbytheACLUwhichrecordsvideofootage
anduploadsittoanACLUserverimmediatelyafteritisrecorded.
Therapidrateatwhichsocialmediaisusedtodisperseinformation,quicklyand
effortlesslybringawarenesstopoliceviolence.Thatsameinformationcanalsobeusedtoserve
nonAmericaninterests.Excessive,unjustifiedpolicebrutalitygeneratesnegativepublicity,
especiallywhenthevictimsareclearlyinnocentornaive.OnJuly8th,2016,theMinistryof
ForeignAffairsoftheBahamasreleasedastatementtoyoungmalesadvisingthemtoexercise

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extremecautioninaffectedcitiesin[regardto]theirinteractionswiththepolice(For
ImmediateRelease,2016).Additionally,itadvisedthemtoactcooperatively,andrefrainfrom
confrontationalbehavior.Itbecomesoverwhelminglyapparentthatasolutionmustbefound
whengovernmentshavetowarntheircitizensofthepotentialdangersoflawenforcement
officers.

EconomicFactors
Therearemanyeconomicissueswhichneedtobeconsideredwhenitcomestotheuseof
bodycamerastocombatpolicemistrust.Onesuchissuedealswiththeeconomicfactors
involvedinstoringvideofootage.Currentbodycamerasarefilmedin1080por720p,which
resultsinavastamountofnecessarydatastorage.Whilethisiscertainlyanimportantfactor,the
overallcostofbodycamerasisperhapsthemostpressingissue,especiallyasmanypolice
stationsareunderfunded.Thoughthecostofthecamerashasdecreasedexponentiallysincethe
technologywasfirstdeveloped,theycanstillberelativelyexpensive.Onlyonethirdofofficers
areoutfittedwithbodycamerasacrossAmerica.
Eachbodycameracancostroughly$1,000,andserverspaceforthevideodatacancost
upwardsof$24,000amonthfor200cameras,equatingto$400,000peryear(Kotowski,2016).
However,asbodycamerasarenotalwayson(theyareonlyimplementedinaltercations),storage
remainsthebiggesteconomicalbarrierintheuseofbodycameras.$24,000fordatastorageis
actuallyatthelowerendofthespectrumwhenitcomestostoragecosts.Conventionaldata
storageof5000terabytescancostaround$137,500monthly,at$0.0275pergigabyte(Cloud

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StoragePricingAmazonSimpleStorageService,2016).Whilesuchextremestorage
measuresmaybeexcessiveatpresent,housingthedataisanundoubtedlycostlyventure.
Forexample,avideoofaveragequalitybitratecanbeupto3.6gigabytesanhourinsize
at1080p(Videos:WhatistheFileSizePerHourofRecording1080pofVideo?,2015).
Assumingthat200officerseachworkan80week,aquarterofthattime(20hours)isspent
dealingwithbodycamfootage.Thisequatesto120hoursforasingleofficerinamonth.3.6
times120times200is86400gigabytes,times$0.0275is$2376dollarsamonth,whichis
comparativelylowinrelationtoplaceslikeDallas,whichhavearound3,500officers,bringing
theircosts$41,000(FulltimeLawEnforcementEmployeesbyCity,2013).

TechnologicalFactors
Oneimportanttechnologicalissuetoconsideristhecustodianofthecamerausage.In
Whowillberesponsibleforcontrollingbodycamerausage?Willofficersbeabletoturnthem
off?Doesthecameralogthetimeitison?Andlastly,cancamerasdifferentiatebetween
sabotageandactualmalfunction?Theshortanswerisyes,however,usagedoesnotguarantee
guaranteeaconviction.Thecamerasarenotonallthetime,theyonlyonoperateincertain
situations.Thisrunstheriskofpotentiallyomittingaltercations.Thoughthesesituationsarerare,
dashboardcameras(whicharealwayson)canbehelpfulinprovidingadditionalcoverage.This
doesnot,however,accountfortheofficerswhoturnofforactivelydestroytheiraudioandvideo
recordingdevices.Despitethat,extensivedashboardandbodycameratechnologyisalreadyin
place,sotherealquestionremainsthecostefficiencywhenitcomestostorage.Thereisaneed
formorestreamlined,costefficientstoragewhich,iflowered,couldprovebeneficial.

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Recommendations
Policeofficersshouldberequiredtowearbodycamerasforseveralreasons.Forone,it
hasbeenproventhatbodycamerausagehasthepotentialtoreducecomplaintsagainstofficers,
aswellasthenumberofincidentsinwhichofficersarecompelledtouseexcessiveforce.
Additionally,bodycamerascanpreservecrucialinformationthatthoseinvolvedintheincident
maynotbeabletorecallduringinvestigations.Andsincebodycamerasregularlyrecord
officersbehavior,thefootagecouldbemonitoredandusedtocorrectorterminateofficerswho
abusetheirauthority.Thedatashouldbestoredbyaseparateentity,liketheDepartmentof
Justice,inordertodeterofficersfromtamperingwiththefootage.
Footageshowcasingofficersengagedinpositiveinteractionswithintheircommunities
couldbeusedtofosterpositiverelationshipsbetweenofficersandcitizens,andtocelebrate
commendablebehaviorincreasingthefunctionalityofthepoliceforce.Finally,videofootage
couldbeusedtohelpexonerateinnocentofficersfromwrongfulaccusationsandconvictions.

ProsandCons
Advantagesinusingbodycamerastocounterpolicemistrustare,firstandforemost,that
theyprovidereal,videointeractionsofofficerswhichcanbeusedtoprovidetransparency,keep
officershonest,andpreventthemfromhidingbehindtheirherostatus.Moreover,ifincidences
occurinwhichofficersareattacked,thevideofootagecanbeusedtoremoveanyambiguity.By
splittingthecostsbetweenthecity,andthestatecamerascanimplementedonawidescale.And
iftheDepartmentofJusticehascontrolofstoringthefootage,lawenforcementwillnotbeable

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totamperwithoralterthefootage.Alloftheseadvantageswouldleadtoamoresafeand
positiveinteractionsandfeelingsbetweenlawenforcementandcitizens.
Adversely,therearedisadvantagesofimplementingbodycamerasaswell.Cameras
wouldnotonlyrequiremaintenance,butalargeservertostorethedata.Thecostofupkeepand
storagecouldbeahugeundertaking.Judicialsystems(criminal,civil,andothers)couldbecome
toodependantontheuseofsuchsystems.Additionally,certainstates(likeWashington)havea2
partyconsentforrecordingthatisusuallytiedtophonetaps.Andlastly,privacyconcernscould
ariseonthebehalfofcitizenswhodonotgiveconsenttobefilmed.Insuchacase,ifabuseof
theirauthoritytookplace,itwouldnotberecorded.Havingtowearbodycameraswhileonduty
mayalsostripofficersoftheirown,personalprivacy.

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References
ACLU.(n.d.).FilmingandPhotographingthePolice.RetrievedSeptember05,2016,from
https://www.aclu.org/issues/freespeech/photographersrights/filmingandphotographingpolice

ATimelineofEventsinRodneyKingsLife(2012,June17).CNN.Retrievedfrom
http://www.cnn.com/2012/06/17/us/rodneykingtimeline/

ConsideringPoliceBodyCameras.(2015,April10).RetrievedSeptember5,2016,fromHarvard
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FulltimeLawEnforcementEmployeesbyCity.(2013).RetrievedSeptember10,2016,from
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e_78_full_time_law_enforcement_employees_texas_by_city_2013.xls

Kotowski,J.(2016,March8).Money,StoragePrimaryObstaclesinPoliceBodyCamera
Implementation.RetrievedSeptember3,2016,from
http://www.emergencymgmt.com/safety/PoliceBodyCamInstallation.html

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Linder,Doug(2001)."TheTrialsofLosAngelesPoliceOfficers'inConnectionwiththeBeating
ofRodneyKing".law2.umkc.edu.RetrievedAugust29,2016.

MacAskill,E.(2010,July9).OscarGrantShooting:OfficerFoundGuiltyofInvoluntary
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Martin,T.(2015,October31).BodyCamerasWillProtectBoththePoliceandthePublic.
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Mydans,Seth(April30,1992).Thiswaslargelythoughttohavehelpedinflametheriot."The
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OscarGrant.(2008).RetrievedSeptember10,2016,fromCaliforniaBeat,
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RiotsEruptinLosAngeles.(n.d.).RetrievedAugust31,2016,from
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