Sunday, April 12, 2015

(S12) Technology & Law Enforcement

                                                            
police cameras.jpg
Police body cameras?  Do the police need more technology?
Police officers protect and serve the community and are generally looked up to by others who can't defend themselves. 

However unfortunate, some officers may have have committed crimes, are accused or recorded of doing illegal or violent acts by witnesses.

There are many stories this week on the news about this very issue.  Check out the articles and links below.  Do some reading!  Provide some original comments about the impact of technology devices and law enforcement:

Cameras & Police News Articles

Technology and Law Enforcement

Law Enforcement - What's real?


1.  Which article did you read?  What did you learn?

2.  Should police officers wear cameras?  What are the pros and cons?  What's taking so long to decide this?

3.  Relative to other occupations or businesses, how sophisticated are the police in general, in overall use of technology?

4.  What technologies do you think would benefit law enforcement?   Apps?   Devices?  Programs?  



Remember -  Thoughtful, original detailed responses.  100 - 200 words. 




35 comments:

  1. 1. I’m wishy-washy on the idea of letting police officers wear cameras, as it would be beneficial to record their point of view, which fending off crime, but yet there’s still the issue with privacy. At one point in time, police officers will be wearing cameras on their uniforms regularly, but at this moment it’s not as needed as some might think. It’s taking so long to decide whether to allow officers permission to wear recording devices, because of cost and again, the issue of privacy.

    2. As time progresses, technology always advances, and so far police tactics are just dipping their toes into the possibilities with technology as a whole. Creative minds will discover ways to advance their tech, letting them become more sophisticated.

    3. I believe it would be a necessity for all police officers to have a GPS tracker on them at all times, to recall their location at the time of a crime. Other devices such as night vision goggles, heat seekers could also majorly benefit officers.

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    1. 1. I found an article relating to technology in law enforcement and learned about all sorts of new technology that are being launched into the world of law and crime stoppers. Things such as language translators, GPS, and graffiti cameras are being used in order to reduce the amount of crime in an area where they are put to use.

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  2. Good job Brendan. I added a question, just reply and add your answer to the new #1. Thanks...MsK :)

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  3. 1. I read the technology and law enforcement. I learned that Technology is changing the way police departments operate, how grants requests are formatted, and what is requested in the local operating budget. Technologies funded today were not even common knowledge just a few years ago.

    2.A pro would be that wearing cameras could prevent instances of police abuse in the future. A con would be Body cameras might be a major invasion of privacy.

    3. I think that they are alright with technology.

    4. I think that the law enforcement would benefit from devices that make them better at there job.

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  4. 1.) I did the one of tech. and law enforcement and a article I have found shown that Police Radars can now see inside homes now. For this small device, it can now peer thru walls to see if anyone is inside. To do this, people can know to whenever to attack inside the house or not. and this little device can also shown some concern of how it goes beyond the privacy we have.

    2.) Well maybe, to some count of it, because now they can't get away with their own crime if they commit one, and as well track where people are. Con for it will defintly well its like anyone else would say, it ruins privacy. Its maybe taking long because alot of people can go for it while others do not go for it.

    3) Well for police officers, they do always need to have a gps, tazer gun, and a walkietalkie. Of course of the basics, but overall they are good of having tech.

    4.)They would make benefit, and do to have the normal stuff, but doing things like the body camera just wont do that much. But what a found which is upgrade of police radars will do go, even though its in the con area same as body cameras which ruins privacy.

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  5. 1.) I read that the police officers suggest wearing Go-Pros on their helmets.

    2.) I'm on board with the idea of officers wearing Go-Pros on their helmets. Privacy might be an issues though, but then again... there are millions of security cameras around the place and people don't seem to mind much.

    3.) Well I haven't seen any illegal officers, so I wouldn't know.

    4.) I think if the technology was more advanced it would make it easier for the officers to do their job.

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  6. 1. I read the Technology and law enforcement article. I learned that police men are becoming more and more advanced, it is changing the way policemen go about there jobs. However i'm sure the police department would love to have all the new and improved technological advancements they do not have the funding that is needed. In my opinion police stations need to come up with a smart sophisticated way to manage funds for new technology.

    2. I think police men should definitely wear body cameras. They hold policemen accountable to there job and provide evidence of crimes and on sight shootings. The problem, law-enforcement officials and experts say, is that these cameras are expensive, and there’s limited evidence detailing their effectiveness.

    3. I would say that policemen are decently sophisticated with technology. They have everything from electronics white boards to K9 cameras, but its not like they have robots making arrest....

    4.It would be cool if police officers did not even have to put there lives in danger... such as robots doing there job.

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  7. 1. I read the second article and learned actually have these things called crime lights. "Crime scenes do not always happen in convenient places. Now, with the arrival of a number of flashlights—each with a different preset wavelength designed to detect hair, fibers, and body fluids at crime scenes—these lights allow a crime scene to be processed faster and more thoroughly than ever before. Sites previously unreachable for powerful fluorescence examination are now accessible. The portability of today’s crime scene examination light sources makes the remotest of rural locations or the top floor of a city building highly accessible for search." -Police Chief Magazine

    2. Police should wear cameras at all times while on the clock. There have been too many incidents just brushed under the rug because there is no official recorded evidence. The pros to this would be that there would no longer be any shady activity with officers. However, everything they do will be documented and could be used against them in a court of law.

    3. Regular officers aren't really big about technology, however, SWAT and other higher-up law enforcers have a lot of gadgets at their disposal.

    4. What would really help law enforcement would be an app or program that can look up background information on a perpetrator or criminal, so the officer can get a grasp of the situation.

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  8. 1.I read the article on the Erik scott case and learned that you can't trust Policemen today.
    2. 100% with them wearing cameras. Since most police officers are power abusing filth,it is absolutely necessary that they wear cameras so they can be held accountable for their crimes. There are no cons to this, if they monitor us all the time then we sure as heck should be able too.
    3.They do have a few fancy gadgets up their sleeves such as tasers and surveillance drones, both of which are used to violate rights.
    4.Cameras would stop illegal police activity. I could care less if they go through my records in such, just as long as i'm allowed to do the same

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  9. 1) I read an article about how the police should have cameras on their chest to display what is going on so then the jury doesn't have to just go with what the police claim instead they have video evidence to follow through.

    2) Yes, they should have to wear cameras so as to capture the scene of the crime or the in-progress crime. People's biggest issue is privacy though so it would be difficult to get it approved because of that issue.

    3) From the very little I've heard, there have been a lot more unreasonable shootings from the police for no apparent reason other than "They tried to reach for my gun"

    4) Tasers, stun guns, and the like should be good enough to detain criminals if they are committing a felony.

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  10. 1.I read the article about Erik Scott, I understand that the police officer was nervous. Officers do not know what they are getting into, traffic stops, or talking to someone, police officers don't know that the people they pulled over or talking to has a gun in their pocket or a knife or anything that can hurt them. Its a crazy job job for them and not all cops are bad, some cops over force the law and goes overboard. Their job is hard enough because they risk their own lives to make the community and people safe.
    2. Its good thing for police officers to have in-car cameras and body cameras because everyday they make judgement calls, weather good ending or bad. They need the body cameras to help them to prove the suspect is guilty. Also some cops will go overboard and the camera will help the chief or sgt in charge to suspense the officer from his or her duty. The camera is a great, because when an officer is called up to a house or anything, its a view were the camera is watching what the cops are getting into.
    3. Police officers jobs are ready hard enough might knowing that strangers shoot them for reason. their reason are stupid " they are cops I should shoot" and I heard some people say they are not human or a monster. They are not monster they have a heart under the badge and they do nothing wrong, its the people's decisions that leads the police to arrest them. Second some people say cops pull out their guns for no reason or they shoot to kill, well that is wrong, if someone has their hands in the pocket, cops will pull out their guns because they do not know that the person has a gun or a knife or if the person reaches for their the same thing will happen the cops will pull out their guns and if that person makes a wrong sorry they will get shot, officers will do because they protect their lives because they don't know if anyone has a gun, and they do have the right to shoot people if there is necessary force. We heard stories on the news that cops shot people for carrying something that may look like a gun, well its kinda true, mean from far back the cops don't know that you have a gun or not and cops do fear for their lives and if a person points at a cop with an object the cops may shoot. Shooting people is not the job for cops, their job to protect and serve.
    4. I think everything they is fine and maybe have a tablet or something that can scan license plates instead of typing the numbers on plates on their computer.

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  11. 1.I read an article about the Rowan police force getting an upgrade in the effect of the body cameras. I learned that they have to state they are video taping things that are happening in dorms and overall campus life, do to privacy issues.

    2.I do not personally believe that police should have cameras. First of all it is a huge invasion of privacy, second police officers are going to be different on tape and third it seem to be a not needed thing in todays society. The pros are no profiling, because it will be seen as racist to the public, and the cons are obviously privacy reasons. The privacy of cops and people.

    3.Police are not very sophisticated in the fact that they just use computers with databases and guns to fight crime.

    4.Apps to have on the go if they are outside of their car.

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  12. 1. I read "Police Body Cameras Will not Change the Culture of Racism in America", and I learned that surveillance does not prevent police brutality, but rather, stronger laws will prevent this disgrace.

    2. Though police officers could monitor crime, nobody would benefit from surveillance except victims of police brutality, allowing justice to be served. This decision is taking so long because the surveillance is a distraction from the real problem: police officers.

    3. Police are all about monitoring and surveillance. Some occupations, especially the medical field, use technology to prolong lives. Police can abuse technology, using authority as an excuse.

    4. Google is all that is needed. Maps, websites, and other things will suffice. No need to record police brutality.

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  13. 1.) I read the article Police Body Cameras Receive Near Universal Support In Poll, and I learned that there were several incidents where having the camera would probably change whether the events occurred or not.
    2.) I would probably say it might be a good idea for police officers to start using the cameras. Some pros would be it might reduce possible corruption due to the fact that the policemen will be monitored more closely with them, although a con would be it would take away privacy and cause people to get a sense of trust reduced by it.
    3.) I would think that police are a little more sophisticated in technology than most other occupations/businesses around, due to the many different types of technology that they use to do things.
    4.) I would say maybe only something like tablets would be needed just so they can be a little more mobile in some cases.

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  14. I read the article about law enforcement and technology. I learned That Police officers have many technology gadgets that help them in certain situations.
    2.I think they should because we had many incidents where people claim that a police officer shot someone due to racism and maybe if theses officers had cameras on them it would show what actually happened instead of what people saw.
    3.Police officers are not sophisticated.They just use computers with databases and guns to fight crime.
    4. An app that notifies the officer of a victims past doing so the officer could be cautious and not be harmed if and when he interacts with the victim.

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  15. 1.I read the “Police caught on camera: The good and the bad” on the CNN site. I learned of some of the unnoticed things done by cops that would have gone unnoticed if not for cameras. Both good and bad, like shooting an unarmed man for one thing, and saving a woman from a burning car for another.

    2. I would say yes, Some cops are just bad people in a uniform and its important to keep an eye out for them as well as other crimes police can commit unnoticed. Pors would be all crimes other deeds can be heaped on record. Cons is it would intrude on all the privacy of the officer

    3. I think cops have a lot of tech sab, they have a lot of gadgets they need to know how to use.

    4. I'm not sure i know what would further help law enforcement in terms of tech.

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  16. 1.I read the “Police caught on camera: The good and the bad” on the CNN site. I learned of some of the unnoticed things done by cops that would have gone unnoticed if not for cameras. Both good and bad, like shooting an unarmed man for one thing, and saving a woman from a burning car for another.

    2. I would say yes, Some cops are just bad people in a uniform and its important to keep an eye out for them as well as other crimes police can commit unnoticed. Pors would be all crimes other deeds can be heaped on record. Cons is it would intrude on all the privacy of the officer

    3. I think cops have a lot of tech sab, they have a lot of gadgets they need to know how to use.

    4. I'm not sure i know what would further help law enforcement in terms of tech.

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  17. 1) Law Enforcement Equipment and Technology. That as crime evolves, so must law enforcement. Such as GPS body armor, and less lethal rounds to combat crime but to protect the public and themselves
    2) No they shouldn't. Yes it can determine which officers are corrupt but even more so it imposes on their privacy, which betrays the constitution, and also why should every officer be punished for the wrongdoings of belligerent officers? Not every officer is trying to get you convicted on false accounts like hollywood is portraying, not every officer is a racist republican who deliberately shoots blacks. It also comes down to government spending on body cameras and how stingy our government is on internal improvements.
    3) Pretty sophisticated in terms of how much they have evolved over the years. FRS, GPS, tazers, communications, they have come a long way from the wild west sheriff.
    4) Devices such as local criminal monitors based on a certain level of predicted harm that criminal or ex-criminal can do.

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  18. 1.I read an article about the Rowan police force getting an upgrade in the effect of the body cameras. I learned that they have to state they are video taping things that are happening in dorms and overall campus life, do to privacy issues.

    2.I do not personally believe that police should have cameras. First of all it is a huge invasion of privacy, second police officers are going to be different on tape and third it seem to be a not needed thing in todays society. The pros are no profiling, because it will be seen as racist to the public, and the cons are obviously privacy reasons. The privacy of cops and people.

    3.Police are not very sophisticated in the fact that they just use computers with databases and guns to fight crime.

    4.Apps to have on the go if they are outside of their car.

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  19. 1. I read the second article, and I learned a brief two side story on technology in law enforcement.
    2. I think they should because there been so much injustice in the new lately. It would be clear what the officer saw an what happened. There actions and others with be accounted for. I think it be interesting. I think it be smart for many reason to have an extra eye.
    3. Police technology is for the betterment of them caring out there duties. So they have defense weapons and technology to communicate and look up people. They use it to better there job. To even keep themselves safe. i like to think there tech would help them with there job.
    4. I think any source of having proof of situations, like the police envelopment a way to ensure the person and the police man/woman reliability. To stop any confusion with cases.

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  20. 1. I read an article called "The Future Is Here: Technology in Police Departments". In that article, I learned that the police can use lasers to identified unknown substances. This device has a 95% chance to work. Officers can use this in situations where they find possible drugs.

    2. I think it would be great if officers had cameras on their person. The video could be used in prosecution and/or in defense of the officer. There have been TONS of police brutality stories in the news lately, and this could help curb that. However, people could always mess with the videos...

    3. The police department is loaded with tons of cool tech devices. They have things for investigations and self defense. Usually military and police get all the fun stuff first.

    4. I think it would be awesome if the police could (this is going to be VERY unrealistic) be able to fire gps tracking chips to chase suspects around.

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  21. 1. Technology and Law Enforcement, I learned that new technologies can offer police many useful methods for fighting criminal activity. Technologies such as body armor and less-lethal projectiles also improve the safety of both police and the public. However, in an increasingly high-tech world, more and more crimes involve technologies and police must be prepared for them.

    2. To have Police Body and Car Camera's would be a great idea. It could stop the hole debate on racial discrimination done by police officers.

    3. Cops are very sophisticated in that they have Facial Recognition Software, GPS, tazers, and their means of communications, they have truly come a long way from the times of the wild wild west sheriffs.

    4. What would really help law enforcement would be an app or program that can, quickly, look up background information on a criminal, so the officer can get a handle on the situation before they get to deep into any situation.

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  22. 1) I read an article named "As law enforcement increases use of license plate readers, privacy advocates fret" on Homeland Security News Wire. I learned that they are bringing back a licence plate reader Incorporated with it's owner information (criminal records, driving eligibility, etc.) tied to it. Police can use this to help get people who shouldn't be there off the road. The only bad part I see with this, is someone who had done something in the past who has changed now have a possibility of being wrongly accused of something they haven't done. That, and someone who isn't the owner could be pulled over for something, and the report might go on the owner's record, or something along those lines.

    2) I think police should have been wearing cameras for a while now. There has been so many episodes of police brutality, or people wrongly accusing police of doing something they haven't. All around, this is a good idea. For when it's time to review what happen, there will be clear evidence of the story line.. On the flip side, citizens should always record their encounters with police, so that there can be both perspectives. The reasoning for this taking so long is mainly due to privacy issues.

    3) Compared to most other jobs, police are pretty tech savvy. They can look up someone in a huge data base in their vehicle, can call other police officers with their walkie-talkies, they have a taser, pepper spray, and many other useful tools.

    4) I think the chest mounted cameras are the big thing the law enforcement is missing right now.

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  23. 1.) They use thermal imaging to locate where someone is in an building. They also have technology that lets them see were someone last standing using thermal imaging.

    2.) Police officers should have body cameras for many reasons. It can stop and/or capture police brutality. It cab also stop cops from being wrongly accused if they did nothing wrong. The main things that have stopped police body cameras from being a big thing is the privacy issue and the money issue.

    3.) Police are probably more tech skills than other jobs. The main reason is because they need to keep up in some areas of technology so they now what criminals may have and also to for better technology to keep them safer.

    4.) I think something that would be beneficial for police is something that can incapacitate someone more effectively than Tasers and is not lethal.

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    Replies
    1. 4.) Another thing that would be useful for police is something that they can put in an address or a licence plate number and tell them quickly if that person has a history of violent crime or other problems with the law. That way if the person is dangerous it can let the officer know so they know if they should be a little more cautious.

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  24. 1. Police caught on camera: The good and the bad, I learned that some people find cops having cameras is an invasion of privacy.

    2. For me i think that the police should carry cameras as it would prove alot of incidents that caused alot of Innocent people to go to jail. The pros are that we would not have trouble proving something that is debatable, the con is that it could potentially say something while meaning something.

    3. A lot of things have been caught on camera and have sent a lot of people to prison, weather it be phone camera or surveillance camera they are still good to have. So whos one to say that the police, the people put on the street to keep you and your family safe, should not contain visual evidence of people who get arrested.

    4.

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  25. 1: Some U.S. Police Officers Employing Personal Body Cameras. I learned that a lot of officers are subjected to false accusations and that some of them are relying on these cameras to document the things that happen to prevent against these accusations.

    2: In my opinion, it would be a good thing for officers to have these personal body cameras because they will be able to better tell what happened during a crime and to tell who was truly at fault. The cons are that this is a very strong way to pry into absolutely everything that the cops do, which in a sense infringes on the right to privacy. It is taking so long to decide because people want privacy as much as the ability to see everything.

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  26. 1.) I read the Law enforcement and technology article and learned that there are many technologies to help with the safety of the public and the officers. Some technologies include: body armor, less-lethal ammunition/projectiles, GPS, and advanced communication systems.

    2.) I think that cops should wear body cams, especially for the public's safety and the cops safety. Pro's would be: evidence, accountability of the officer and civilian, abuse against civilian/cop could become less of a problem. Con's are: Expenses, privacy issues, technological issues with the camera. It's taking so long because of the expense and the citizens choice.

    3.) Police are fairly sophisticated with technology, they have to be if they want to be efficient with gathering info and communication. They have a bunch of tech in their cruiser, and they also have some on their body (radio's,tasers, GPS).

    4.) Maybe thermal goggles or night vision, since a lot of crimes are committed in the night and flashlights could give the officer away of it was a stealth situation.

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  27. 1.) I investigated some links on the body-cameras on cops. I really like the thought of body cameras. It is an easy way to keep tabs on cops, easily show if they used too much force, etc. Very handy, I hope it goes through.

    2.) I feel it is right for cops to wear body cameras. Anything they see should be able to be reviewed if it need be. It is an easy way to investigate cops if they are suspicious.
    Cons would be things like the cost of all the cameras, and people may feel an invasion of privacy.
    One of the things halting this is a California bill, but I don't see why they wouldn't want them.

    3.) I think police are using the best technology they can right now. Yes, some is out of date, but they use so much technology to do their jobs. The more they can get, the better they will be, and the faster they can react to danger.

    4.) I think more devices and programs would help. Apps not necessarily, but anything can help. Every new piece of technology benefits the officers. I don't see any downside in giving them more tools to work with.

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  28. 1.) I read the one on cameras on cops. And I learned that cameras on a police officer would improve the country because why would a cop commit assault if they know they could be put in jail because of a law they broke.

    2.) They should because there are police officers that commit crimes on a daily basis because they aren't being watched. So cameras being required on cops would solve some problems but not all of them.

    3.) The police are using military tech so in a sense they are on par with the military in terms of tech.

    4.) The police is fine in terms of tech right now so they really don't need any thing more to do their jobs.

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  29. 1) I read the second article and learned that technology is heavily changing modern law enforcement and how they do thing.

    2) I believe cops should wear cameras because if they are assaulted or they are moving to a crime scene the evidence is recorded on their cameras they are wearing.

    3)The modern police are on basic par with most tech advancements in other fields.

    4) As of right now the police have everthing they really need to help them

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  30. 1. Law Enforcement Equipment and Technology, There are many technological advances in law enforcement tech. Cameras that attach to the body, body armor, communication, etc.

    2. They should be allowed to. it's to record down activity and also be video evidence proof against criminals and the crimes that they're committing.

    3. Cops uses the basics, tasers, walkie talkie, police scanner radio. All very basic technology.

    4. What I've seen is that there's a device that can intercept texts. That may be invasion of privacy, but also it could be very useful to the police force to intercept possible crimes and prevent it from happening.

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  31. 1.) I read an article about how technology helps police officers. I learned about how thermal imaging keeps the officer safe as it doesn't give away their positions as some other techniques may do so.

    2.) I think police officers should wear cameras because there have been multiple incidents where cops are being blamed for crimes they may have not committed. A pro to this would be confirming or denying suspicions that people would have trying to blame cops. A con would be that the camera may prevent efficiency and the footage could be tampered. This could be taking a long time because while some people may be all for it, just as many people are against it.

    3.) Police see to be just dipping their toes in the water with the possibilities of technology and how useful they can prove. As of now, cop use the basic radio, taser, etc.

    4.) I think that, as of now, the police don't really need anything more advanced to help them.

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