Area police: Body cameras can be effective but costly
President Obama's proposal to put small cameras on the uniforms of 50,000 police officers nationwide has met with general approval by law enforcement in Butler County.
Obama proposed that the federal govermnent pay $75 million to help pay for 50,000 of the small cameras to record police on the job, with state and local governments paying half the cost. The FBI estimates there were just under 700,000 police officers in the United States.
The White House has said the cameras could help bridge deep mistrust between law enforcement and the public. It also potentially could help resolve the type of disputes between police and witnesses that arose in the Ferguson, Mo., shooting where a police officer shot and killed an unarmed black male.
Zelienople, Jackson Township, Slippery Rock and Butler police departments mostly support the idea.
However, their support was mitigated by the prospects of having to pay for the technology.
The units can range from several hundred dollars to $1,000 or more.
Other departments around the country that have tried the cameras also cite the storage of the cameras' footage as a big expense.
Zelienople Police Chief Jim Miller said he would be open to having his officers wear the cameras.
“It would be just an extension of the car camera. As long as we follow the rules and regulations, I'd be fine with it,” Miller said.
Miller said the department has had dashboard-mounted cameras for years on its vehicles, though it has seldom had to look at the footage.
“Fortunately we haven't had too many incidents around here where we had to have a backup on what happened,” he said.
Jackson Township Police Chief Terry Seilhamer, a former state police troop commander, said he would support having the cameras, though the cost of the devices could be a potential drawback. Video evidence can be used to show what happened with an arrest, he said.“It would do away with a lot of the 'he said, she said' type of stuff,” he said.Township police have the car cameras, which also can help to clear up disputed stories.Seilhamer said as a troop commander, he used footage from dashboard cameras in internal investigations. In one instance a man tripped and fell, injuring himself on the police car. When the man accused the officer of brutality, the video footage was used to exonerate the officer, he said.Butler Police Capt. David Dalcamo said that while body-worn cameras sound like a good idea, he has concerns about the high-tech equipment.“I think body cameras can capture useful evidence that can be used in the prosecution of crimes,” he said. “I think it would be a good tool for the checks and balances of the (criminal justice) system.”But Dalcamo admitted that the video recording devices raise privacy issues.He also acknowledged that he needed to review the body-cam technology to better form his opinion on the practicality of the video devices.Costs of the body cameras, he admitted, was yet another concern.Butler County Sheriff Mike Slupe is not sold on the need for the technology.“When is it going to stop?” Slupe asked.He pointed out police officers already wear a number of items.“What else do law enforcement officers have to wear to protect themselves and others?” Slupe said.He said the appropriate people should be hired as officers and that ongoing evaluation would ensure there is no abuse.Slupe has no problem with cameras in police cruisers.County District Attorney Richard Goldinger said the idea of police wearing cameras on their uniforms is a good one.“For officer safety I think it would be invaluable,” Goldinger said. “And it would be a great evidentiary tool.”He said state police and many departments have had cameras in their cars for a handful of years. And that video has come into play when investigating crimes, both in favor of the prosecution and the defense.But, Goldinger said, the biggest issue for cameras — whether they are in cars or on officers — is the same:“It's an expense many of the smaller departments just cannot afford,” Goldinger said. “If the federal government would like to see cameras on all officers, the federal government will need to help pay for these cameras.”<i>Eagle staff writers Jared Stonesifer, Joe Genco, Tom Victoria, Jim Smith, Kim Paskorz and John Bojarski contributed to this report.</i>
