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San Jose Police to try out head cams

595 views 6 replies 6 participants last post by  dsee11789 
#1 ·
California City's Police to Wear Head-Mounted Cameras - Local News | News Articles | National News | US News - FOXNews.com

California City's Police to Wear Head-Mounted Cameras

Sunday , December 20, 2009

AP
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SAN JOSE, California —
Police in California are testing head-mounted cameras to record interactions with the public.

The test using 18 patrol officers comes as citizens' groups criticize the department for too often using force during arrests.

Officers are to turn on the cameras every time they talk with anyone. They download the recordings after every shift.

The cameras are the size of a Bluetooth cell phone earpiece and attach by a headband above the ear.

San Jose is the first major American city to try the devices, made by Arizona-based Taser International. Taser is paying for the experiment, but the price could be high if San Jose equips all 1,400 officers.

Each kit costs $1,700, plus a $99 per officer monthly fee. That's $4 million department-wide each year.
I'm of two minds about this. On the one hand it could be useful at times in giving the actual prespective of the officer. On the other hand it could just make more incidences like the one SIXTO gave us with the dash cams. Only one point of view. And turning it on is just one more thing they would have to think about going into a situation.
 
#2 ·
Well, it beats mounting the camera on the Taser itself. When cameras are mounted on weapons, what happened BEFORE the weapon was deployed is not recorded. That being said, I would hate to have to wear one of these gadgets.

OTOH, I have recently thought about acquiring a personal gadget to record my side of things; a gadget which is under MY control. My employer does not use very many dash cams, but when comlaints have been filed against the officers who use them, it has generally shown the "citizen" to be a liar, or to have greartly embellished the story. Leftists may not want to hear it, but generally, officers obey the law while enforcing the law, and "citizens" who complain against officers generally have a larger agenda.

I had thought about something that attaches to the frame of my Oakleys, if and when technology gets to that point, and becomes affordable.

Edited to add: I would want to have a gadget that generally stayed on, only to be switched off when I am in a relatively secure area doing something mundane like a report. FWIW, I saw a small video camera at a local bicycle shop, which got me thinking in this direction. It is made to be mounted on a bike helmet, which is still a bit large for my idea of something to be worn everywhere.
 
#6 ·
Each kit costs $1,700, plus a $99 per officer monthly fee. That's $4 million department-wide each year.
Wow, that is crazy. Where in the world are they getting a "monthly fee" from? Unless it uploaded live video via cell phone signals or some other wireless provider, there should be no other cost than the upfront hardware, which at 1700 a pop is still far more expensive than it should be.
 
#7 ·
Taser Intl just wants to make money, and cop haters are gonna try and push this on departments.

At $1700 a pop though, no ones gonna buy it.

Stupid Idea.
 
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