Police on watch by body cams

By: Alex Ayala

Plattsburgh —With the rise of police abuse in America, states and cities local wide are determine if adding body cameras onto police officers will help ease tensions between civilians and police.

For the City of Plattsburgh, some tests have already been done to see if body cameras can work.

In February of this year, the Plattsburgh Police department tested two body cameras onto police officers.

"It's not a silver bullet fix for community relations, “Jerry Lottie, Interim Chief of University Police at SUNY Plattsburgh said. "It shouldn't be a substitute for community relations."

With many people wanting police reform, some think the body cameras are a first step in the right direction.

Former crime journalist and current criminal justice professor at SUNY Plattsburgh, Breea Willingham said it would be a good proactive measure for Plattsburgh.

"Just because our city isn't always in the headline for this egregious crime recently, doesn’t mean it can't happen," Willingham said. "Just because we haven't seen it doesn't mean it hasn't happened."

One of the biggest pros is accountability not just by police but by all parties involved. If a citizen knows they are being recorded, they might react differently should for example be pulled over or engage with an altercation with an officer.

The same is said for officers who know that if they are being recorded, their actions might be different. But how would people know an altercation took place if the cameras are not only 24/7? Or what if an officer forgot to turn on the camera?

These are issues Willingham said could be a problem.

"There could be officers who resent using them and therefore not be using them in a way they should," she said

This was an issue with the test body cameras as cold temperatures made the batteries died prematurely during the test run.

Another possible problem Willingham mentioned is manipulation of the cameras.

Can what has been recorded deleted? Raising the issue off privacy rights between citizens and recording. Though a valid concern, Willingham doesn't see it as an invasion of privacy.

"People don't cry invasion of privacy when someone is recording on their camera phone," she said.

Lottie says that invasion of privacy is a concern, especially for communication between the community and police. 

"There could be a time when we walk into a student’s room to interview a student," Lottie said. "That room now and everything in it get picked up by the camera as a recording."

But City Police are not just getting body cameras; universities are now adding them to their collection.

Universities such as Piedmont University, Butler University, Syracuse University and Northern Illinois are just a few of the college adding body cameras to their University police force.

The cameras are expensive with the average price per camera being up to $4,000 to $5,000.

There is currently no update from police to see if Plattsburgh will adopt body cameras since the test run in February.

But Lottie see doesn't see the camera as a be all fix all solution. He said he sees it only as a tool and doesn't want to use it as a shortcut for community relations.

"It really comes down to the police department having a relationship with the community they serve and can that camera be a tool, absolute but I don’t want idea of using it as a shortcut."

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