York County police talk body cameras

Aug. 31--Richard Shoemaker stood in line patiently for about 30 minutes Tuesday as other York residents posed questions and concerns to a panel of police executives.

The 19-year-old Penn State York student was wearing a shirt and tie because he wanted to be taken seriously on what he believes is a serious issue.

Finally, he stepped up to the mic, and said, "We think every officer should wear a camera."

Shoemaker spoke on behalf of York Cop Block, a group whose members try to hold law enforcement accountable by filming police stops with cellphones if they happen to drive by them.

District Attorney Tom Kearney responded quickly by saying all five of the local police chiefs on the panel would agree.

The NAACP-organized meeting lasted three hours and covered several topics related to improving relations between a diverse York community and the police.

But the conversation started Tuesday by Shoemaker, and interviews with police and other experts during the week, revealed that the matter of pinning a small camera on an officer's lapel is widely supported as a means of developing a sense of trust between York County residents and law enforcement. The body cameras would function like a police car's dashboard camera, providing a first-person point of view recording of an officers' interactions.

Springettsbury Police Chief Thomas Hyers is working to introduce the body cameras at his department. A vendor is scheduled to demonstrate them Sept. 9, he said.

"Cameras are a hot topic for a lot of reasons," he said. "And there's not a lot of reasons not to have them ... particularly in light of what happened in Ferguson and elsewhere."

City police to get cameras

In the St. Louis suburb of Ferguson, Missouri, protests were sparked after an unarmed man, 18-year-old Michael Brown, was shot and killed by a police officer earlier this month. The community, in an effort to find a solution in the wake of Brown's death, petitioned the White House to sign a law to require police departments across the country to equip their officers with cameras. Known as the "Mike Brown law," the petition had 151,445 signatures, already well ahead of its goal to reach 100,000 by Sept. 12.

Hyers said the cameras would help drive down complaints made against officers.

"People act differently when they know they're being recorded," he said. And, he added, "I believe overwhelmingly police officers act in a professional way. Are there cases when they don't? Yes. I think cameras will mostly vindicate officers."

York City Police Chief Wes Kahley said his department is about to buy two body cameras, which will be used by the York City School District resource officer. They could be useful during disorderly situations, he said.

Grant money will pay for the cameras, Kahley said.

The department tried getting approval for body cameras more than a year ago, only to realize state law did not allow them, the chief said. But the state Legislature recently changed the wiretap law to allow law enforcement to use body cameras, Kahley said.

Police and public support

It is high-tech gadgets like body cameras that can help police officers maintain the support of the communities they serve to protect, said Dr. Jonathan Lee, assistant professor of criminal justice at Penn State Harrisburg.

"Police officers can lose support if they fail to secure legitimacy in their enforcement," Lee said. "A body camera can secure public support."

Lee, who specializes in criminal psychology and police behavior analysis, said officers are rational human beings who know the importance of legitimacy and try to act on the consensus of the public.

But, Lee said, it becomes difficult for an officer to define consensus in communities with a mix of races and varying public opinions. That can lead to the challenge of convincing the public that officers are doing a good job, Lee said.

Nonetheless, cameras will make people feel more secure because they know officers will be held accountable for misconduct, he said. And officers are under pressure and have to think about the possible repercussion of any kind of misconduct, Lee said.

"There are unfortunate occasions when police officers have no option but to use deadly force," Lee said. "This body camera can be a really good device that can actually support a legitimate use of deadly force."

Numerous York County residents on Facebook shared opinions both for and against equipping officers with body cameras.

Chelly Pazdan, 46, of Emigsville, a senior insurance claims adjuster, said in a later interview that recording an officer's point of view would present an unbiased view to a police incident.

"It certainly can't hurt," she said of buying the cameras.

Others were more skeptical.

Bryan Rizzo wrote on Facebook that the body camera should only be viewed as another tool for law enforcement, noting that the cameras never show everything going on around an officer. Also, he added, technology can fail -- batteries could die or microphones falter, Rizzo posted.

An unbiased third party

Sandra Thompson, president of York NAACP, wants to bring together groups, including the NAACP, that would work with police departments on issues like diversity and hiring applicants from York County.

Thompson, who said she supports bringing body cameras to the police, described the cameras as an unbiased third party, which could also be a training tool for officers who can review the recording to correct any mistakes or learn how to handle a situation differently.

"Cameras tell the story," she said.

For Shoemaker, police wearing cameras can put an end to "he said, she said" in an argument between an officer and citizen.

"Officers have a difficult job, yes," Shoemaker said. "I do believe with power comes great responsibility. The majority of police are nice people, but some overstep the line."

York City Police Chief Wes Kahley said the department is buying two cameras from Digital Ally, a manufacturer of digital surveillance technology.

The camera module for the body camera unit is 1.125 by 1.5 inches, according to Digital Ally's website.

The camera can automatically start recording and there is an option to either have the audio always on or off when recording video, the website says.

___

(c)2014 York Daily Record (York, Pa.)

Visit York Daily Record (York, Pa.) at www.ydr.com

Distributed by MCT Information Services