From Brian Lockhart, CT Post:
Police officers’ every move in the field could eventually be captured on uniform-mounted cameras.
That was the biggest revelation out of City Hall Monday night, when Mayor Finch’s office finally answered repeated requests from Hearst Connecticut Media about how to better police the cops, following the Beardsley Park beat-down of a stun-gunned suspect.
The uniform cameras, required in municipalities where the federal government is cracking down on rogue departments, are being researched as one voluntary option in Connecticut’s largest city. The Bridgeport Police Department is operating not under federal oversight.
… Information was finally released after the administration became aware of critical comments Hearst was preparing to publish from ex-Mayor John Fabrizi and businesswoman Mary-Jane Foster, both of whom might primary Finch to become the Democratic candidate for mayor in 2015.
Full story here.
They could use them at the donut shop to make it easier to order a good selection for the precinct.
Bridgeport’s diversity suggests bagels are an equal source of carbs for the women and men in blue.
Are the cameras on all the time, or just when an officer’s heart rate increases? Or are they triggered by voice?
I can remember stories of police exhaustion and how a brief nap, sometimes called ‘cooping,’ in the car while parked in an out-of-sight location was common knowledge. Maybe just in the ‘burbs, but in such a situation wouldn’t there be a distinct danger of falling asleep, having your head fall on your chest while snoring, and having the camera automatically snap a selfie??? How do you explain that one? Time will tell.
Now that the joking is over, I think the cameras will help protect the officers. I believe they now have a way to videotape an arrest. These cameras will also be used to disprove allegations from some shithead the cops beat him up. I want to remind a few people out there these cops deal with nasty and dangerous people every day and they should not be compared to the three who were arrested.
Thank you, Andy. It’s important to remember women and men who go into public service as police officers enter because they want to give back and be part of making communities better. This, and similar incidents, are tragic and also reprehensible but they are not the whole picture. More and consistent training, open dialogue and community conversations are needed in challenging circumstances.