Departments face obstacles in introducing body cameras

http://www.wcvb.com/news/departments-face-obstacles-in-introducing-body-cameras/34715270



Departments face obstacles in introducing body cameras
By PATRICK JOHNSON, Republican of Springfield
8:36 PM EDT Aug 15, 2015

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. —In light of recent events nationwide involving police and the use of force, everyone seems to have fallen in love with the idea of fitting police with body-worn cameras to record activity.

But in all likelihood, it will be some time - years maybe - before the devices are deployed on police officers in Springfield or anywhere else in Massachusetts.

What's the problem? Survey after survey shows broad public support for body-worn cameras, or body cams, on police. That support has only grown in light of rioting in places like Ferguson, Missouri or more recently Baltimore and now the campus of the University of Cincinnati, where police have been accused of misconduct in the deaths of unarmed black suspects.

For the public, they are seen as a vital check-and-balance against those officers who would abuse their authority. For the police, they are seen as protection against members of the public who would falsely accuse officers of police brutality.