General Discussion
Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsScuba
(53,475 posts)... better behaved cops and what percentage was due to knowing your false claim will be exposed.
ZombieHorde
(29,047 posts)but I have no idea how to honestly figure that out.
zipplewrath
(16,646 posts)One indication would be whether the "success" rate for those that were filed changed. If the same number of complaints were found to be valid, despite the overall drop in complaints, it suggests that there were alot of unfounded complaints. i.e. the cops behavior hadn't changed but the reporting became more justified. Alternately, if the number of successful events rose, even though the total number of complaints dropped, it would suggest that the cops were now not getting away with their behaviors, but they hadn't learned to change yet.
Now, if the number of valid complaints dropped AND the number of complaints overall dropped, it suggest that the cops had either changed their behavior, OR they were actually helping defend the cops against unwarranted charges. One indication might be which had dropped more, the number of complaints, or the number of valid charges.
Personally, I agree with another poster which is everyone should be recording these exchanges, from both sides. It would probably make everyone behave a little better, even if just a little. Over all though one would think the police would be all for this. If it is dropping the number of complaints (valid or otherwise), how is that not a good thing, unless it is because the police are changing their behaviors.
iandhr
(6,852 posts)KamaAina
(78,249 posts)Scuba
(53,475 posts)... they know there's a video record of their actions.
Renew Deal
(81,802 posts)There is no source for the original claim
Half-Century Man
(5,279 posts)with the study?
If it works, with no harmful effects, use it.
Salviati
(6,002 posts)Some combination of better behaved cops, and fewer fraudulent complaints - what's not to like?
HappyMe
(20,277 posts)It's good either way.
msanthrope
(37,549 posts)also have fewer marginal complaints pressed from the public.
Donald Ian Rankin
(13,598 posts)But even that might influence their behaviour.
Ideally, you want cameras that everyone *but* the wearer knows are fake.
Uben
(7,719 posts)...of which I would have no problem with, as long as they understand we as citizens have the same right to photograph or film our interactions with the police! What's good for the goose.......
Playinghardball
(11,665 posts)from the citizens might have been unfounded and the cameras put a stop to that bs...
Mariana
(14,849 posts)I don't see any downside, regardless of the actual cause of the reduction in complaints.
reddread
(6,896 posts)TheDeputy
(224 posts)I had arrested some punk. His mom later came to the station and claimed that she had seen me rough up her son. She was doing the whole "my son didn't do anything, he's a good boy, that cop beat his ass" thing.
My supervisor asked if she wished to lodge a formal complaint. She said she did. He gave her the complaint form and said that the event had been recorded. He further stated that our department does charge people who file false reports.
She left.
Comrade Grumpy
(13,184 posts)Sounds like a nice way to intimidate people into not complaining.
TheDeputy
(224 posts)Charges for ones that are false. Big difference.
KurtNYC
(14,549 posts)If one is physically or verbally mishandled during an arrest then the recording protects your right to have the matter reviewed.
If one makes up untrue charges against an officer who has done nothing wrong then the recording protects the officer and their career.
AnotherMcIntosh
(11,064 posts)Renew Deal
(81,802 posts)darkangel218
(13,985 posts)Historic NY
(37,449 posts)From 2011 but I can bet its much higher now.with in car and other video/audio/gps/etc.
One of the newest uses is streaming video. Locally a neighboring city was able to identify a shooting in progress and dispacth police before the calls came in. They tracked the suspects in hours.....even got some dramatic footage of one of the shooters running head first into a street sign while trying to escape.
http://www.policeforum.org/library/press-releases/PERFtechnologyconferencePressRelease4411.pdf
Bernardo de La Paz
(48,789 posts)It leads to lawsuits they lose and the city ends up compensating the photographer.
In some jurisdictions, it is illegal to video police because of old laws forbidding sound recording. Should be possible to rig a silent video without much trouble so no audio is recorded.
reddread
(6,896 posts)city of Fresno was outraged by their liability from video recordings to the point that they banned unpermitted movie filming or something to that effect. They also escaped handily on the filmed beating above when they were able to lock the victim away and settle his hash for a paltry sum. Remind me not to call that lawyer.
Fla Dem
(23,352 posts)gopiscrap
(23,674 posts)Alcibiades
(5,061 posts)This is an excellent practice to adjudicate disagreements, though, and even prevent them. I see it as win-win.
Renew Deal
(81,802 posts)Aldo Leopold
(685 posts)Sounds like one of those facts you get from a free iPhone app. I would like to know the source.
Kolesar
(31,182 posts)Right up there with NY Times and Christian Science Monitor
reddread
(6,896 posts)markpkessinger
(8,381 posts)Spitfire of ATJ
(32,723 posts)EC
(12,287 posts)say that complaints are down because the citizens know they are being filmed and therefore they behave and don't complain or because cops behave knowing they are being filmed?
The answer can't be known. I do know, however, of numerous local incidents where the cameras exonerate the officers.