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Increasing Accountability and Trust: A Case for the Adoption of Body-Worn Cameras in
all Police Departments
Gabriel Denson
School of Business, Liberty University
JCUS 230, Criminal Justice Research and Writing
Professor DeBoer
January 27, 2025
Increasing Accountability and Trust: A Case for the Adoption of Body-Worn Cameras in
all Police Departments
The widespread use of body-worn cameras (BWCs) within all police departments around
the U.S. would increase officer accountability, limit misconduct, and improve transparency by
lowering the number of use-of-force incidents, presenting objective evidence, and creating
more respect between civilians and officers. Research suggests that BWCs can build trust in the
police and foster better community relations by providing a transparent and professional
method of policing.
Introduction with Thesis Statement:
I. Increased Accountability and Encouraging Professionalism.
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A. There are many reasons that accountability can be increased with body-worn
cameras. An account of an unarmed black man being shot and killed by an officer who
did not wear a camera could have been proven as either an accident or purposeful if the
officer was wearing a camera. (Wright and Houston 2021) The article emphasizes that
the officer’s awareness of the BWC could have de-escalated the situation and possibly
the death. Overall, the use of BWCs can increase officers' accountability.
B. Although accountability rises using body-worn cameras, professionalism is
created within the police force. Professionalism comes from building a teaching
opportunity for officers to understand “why?” BWCs can help, for example, “providing
police with support and guidance on key topics that should be broached in BWC policy.”
(Saulnier, Bagg, and Thompson, 2022) Support and guidance come with having a
department focused on professionalism; by encouraging officers to do their best, there is
a chance of increased pride in their work, which improves overall professionalism.
II. The Reduction of Use of Force and Misconduct
A. Use of force is used when a situation gets dangerous for either the officers or
citizens; therefore, when police are on a call, they are using discretionary action to treat
the problem, but in high-stress situations, officers can make mistakes. The solution
would be having a BWC and restrictions on how they can operate them, which could
reduce their use of force. For example, “(moderator analyses suggest that BWCs may be
more likely to reduce police use of force if agencies highly restrict officers’ discretion in
how they use the cameras).” (Lum et al., 2020) The goal is for the lesser use of force in
all situations and the use of force to be present only for necessity.
B. Oversight and training are two things that can prevent misconduct from
happening because they are meant to inform the officers of possible situations you can
experience. Some departments have used previous BWC footage to train recruits, “In the
most recent survey by the Bureau of Justice Statistics, half of all police agencies reported
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that one of the reasons they acquired BWCs was to improve training.” (Willis & Willis,
2022) Both of these things create a positive mindset for officers, knowing that what they
do, the department cares for, and they could become a training subject because of their
good work promoting good behavior and practices. Therefore, with trained officers and
BWC, fewer mistakes can happen in the field.
III. Public Eye and Trust Building
A. The relationship between citizens and police officers has always been rough,
from the portrayal of crooked cops on television and movies to real-life demographics
being targeted and proven to be biased. The public eye has a positive outlook on the use
of
BWCs. For example, “In another representative survey of 2,113 individuals in the US,
over 90% of respondents supported requiring officers to wear BWCs, while 81% believed
BWCs would protect police and citizens equally.” (Thomas, Peterson, and Lawrence,
2020) The public eye is something all departments should take seriously because it can
cause mistrust if not.
B. Trust is something that is earned and, therefore, created by transparency. The
operation of BWCs has been controversial, so a hurdle in having them is when
departments have footage of a crime but refuse to release it. This would need to change
to build trust within their communities. An article states, “This research addresses the
impact of delayed video on the community and how it further prevents them from
building a positive and trusting relationship with the police.” (Bush, 2021) The
community's trust should be built on the use and shared footage of BWCs. This could
help different demographics of people start to trust the police force, possibly reducing
resistance to authority and creating a safer and just system.
Conclusion:
References
Bush, C. L. (2021). Public Perceptions of Delays in the Release of Police Body-Worn Camera
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Footage. Journal of Social Change, 13(1). https://doi.org/10.5590/JOSC.2020.13.1.01
Lum, C., Koper, C. S., Wilson, D. B., Stoltz, M., Goodier, M., Eggins, E., Higginson, A., & Mazerolle,
L. (2020). Body-worn cameras' effects on police officers and citizen behavior:
A systematic review. Campbell systematic reviews, 16(3), e1112.
https://doi.org/10.1002/cl2.1112
SAULNIER, A., BAGG, J., & THOMPSON, B. (2021). Canadian Policing and Body-Worn Cameras:
Factors to Contemplate in Developing Body-Worn Camera Policy. Canadian
Public Policy / Analyse de Politiques, 47(2), 131–157.
https://www.jstor.org/stable/27034147
Thompson, P.S., Peterson, B.E., and Lawrence, D.S. (2020), "Community perceptions:
procedural justice, legitimacy and body-worn cameras", Policing: An International
Journal, 43(3), 495–509. https://doi.org/10.1108/PIJPSM-10-2019-0161
Willis, J. J., & Willis, J. J. (2022). “Culture eats strategy for breakfast”: An in depth examination ‐
of police officer perceptions of body worn camera implementation and their ‐
relationship to policy, supervision, and training. Criminology & Public Policy, 21(3), 713–
737.
https://doi.org/10.1111/1745-9133.12591
Wright, J. E., & Houston, B. (2021). Accountability at its Finest: Law Enforcement Agencies and
Body-Worn Cameras. Public Performance & Management Review, 44(4), 735–757.
https://doi.org/10.1080/15309576.2021.1916545
