Privacy

Resources about Privacy and Related Issues

An Examination of Body-Worn Camera Digital Evidence Management (DEM) Strategies

Over the last few years, thousands of law enforcement agencies in the United States have adopted body-worn cameras (BWCs), and those agencies immediately had to deal with the tremendous amount of digital evidence generated by the technology. Digital evidence management (DEM) is the process by which an agency manages, stores, and transmits the data generated by BWCs and other devices (e.g., other types of cameras, cell phones). DEM is a critically important feature of a successful BWC program.

Managing Digital Evidence from Body-Worn Cameras: Case Studies in Seven Sites

Digital Evidence Management (DEM) encompasses a wide variety of devices, technologies, tools, and data, particularly as they relate to the criminal justice system (Goodison, Davis, and Jackson, 2015). This report is about body-worn cameras (BWCs) and the digital evidence (footage) created by the technology. The main purpose of the study is to understand and explain the key challenges faced by law enforcement agencies and prosecutor offices as they use BWCs routinely.

Body-Worn Camera Footage: What do we do with all that evidence?

The US Department of Justice (DOJ) Office of Justice Programs (OJP) Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) launched the Body-Worn Camera (BWC) Policy and Implementation Program (PIP) in FY 2015 to assist law enforcement agencies in enhancing or implementing BWC programs. PIP’s primary goals are to improve public safety, reduce crime, and improve trust between police and the citizens they serve.

Part II: The Role of Body-Worn Cameras (BWCs) in Recent Public Protests in Smaller Agencies: Benefits, Challenges and Solutions Webinar

It is important to acknowledge that the implementation of body-worn cameras (BWCs) affects various operations and administration, as well as internal and external stakeholders, in significant ways. We are in a critical time in history where this technology can assist law enforcement agencies during protests and other First Amendment events.

Part I: The Role of Body-Worn Cameras (BWCs) in Recent Public Protests in Larger Agencies: Benefits, Challenges and Solutions

Arizona State University (ASU), a BWC TTA project partner, conducted a survey asking BWC PIP sites about their experiences with the recent protests, the value that BWCs added, challenges and problems each agency experienced, and solutions their agency implemented to overcome those challenges and problems.

In View From the Field – Camden County, New Jersey, Police Department

The Camden County, New Jersey, Police Department began its body-worn camera (BWC) program in 2015 with a pilot program. Camden County received its first Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) BWC Policy and Implementation (PIP) grant in 2016 and a second BWC grant in 2017. The agency employs around 650 employees, including 450 sworn officers, and is responsible for providing preventive and reactive policing services for the residents of Camden City, which covers 8.9 square miles and serves a population of 78,000.

Overcoming the 'Big Brother' Fear for Officers and Deputies

The ‘Big Brother’ fear can be very challenging for deputies, police, and, correctional officers to overcome when their actions are being recorded and displayed to the community upon request. This fear for officers/deputies includes sometimes unfounded fears of being caught, someone always watching, and their actions being made public for everyone to see all of the time. This webinar provided insights and experiences regarding how law enforcement agencies and their officers and deputies wearing body-worn cameras overcame the ‘Big Brother’ fear.

Body-Worn Cameras in Community Supervision

Video technology has been an important public safety tool for decades. From the earliest closed-circuit television (CCTV) systems in correctional facilities to in-dash cameras in police vehicles, video technology has been used to deter criminal behavior, document encounters or behaviors of interest, and to investigate and solve crimes. The current iteration of video technology in public safety is body-worn cameras (BWC). The use of BWCs dates back to 2005 when small-scale tests were conducted in police departments in the United Kingdom (Goodall, 2007).