14 DAY TRIAL // Metropolitan Police has recently announced a trial program to provide body-worn video cameras for officers to record evidence and improve their interactions with the public. The measure is supposed to ensure greater transparency when it comes to officers' actions and avoid speculation about controversial incidents.
Starting this month, the Met will be piloting 500 body-worn cameras. Police officers assigned to patrol nine London areas will be wearing the cameras in a bid to improve public confidence in the police. If the trial program is successful, the additional piece of equipment will be rolled out across Britain's biggest police force.
Rialto Police Department in California has carried out a pioneering experiment in which officers wore the body cameras for over a year. After the experiment, it was found that complaints against officers dropped more than 80 per cent, while the use of force against civilians dropped by more than 60 percent after the introduction of the body-worn cameras.
“When you know you're being watched you behave a little better. That's just human nature. As an officer you act a bit more professional, follow the rules a bit better,” said the Rialto police chief, according to the Guardian.
The introduction of body-worn video cameras for armed officers was considered by the Met after Mark Duggan's shooting in 2011.
Mr. Duggan's death sparked protests which escalated in riots across the country after he was shot by police officers who stopped the taxi in which he was traveling, in Tottenham, north London. Officers said they were attempting to arrest the 29-year-old man on suspicion of planning an attack and claimed that he was armed.
Duggan's family said he was unlawfully killed, but a public inquiry decided on January 8 that the killing was justifiable. Met's senior officials hope the body cameras will help both firearms officers and regular people be more open when it comes to police investigations.
The Met's assistant commissioner Mark Rowley said that was very rare for London police officers to open fire. He mentioned that regular police officers did not usually carry guns, explaining that between 2010 and 2012, there were 12,721 incidents where armed officers were deployed, and shots were fired only on four occasions.
“There are great benefits to having these incidents on video. [...] We don't need all these different opinions and conjecture - it's much easier to get to the facts,” Mr. Rowley said, as reported by the London Evening Standard.