Law Enforcement and Body-Cams
Body-cams have transformed policing, but how does research explain their impact on justice, accountability, and public trust?
Behind every body-cam is more than just footage—it raises questions about truth, control, and accountability. From reducing arrests to sparking debates on excessive force, these cameras have shifted the landscape of policing and public trust.
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References
Barak Ariel. 2016. “Police body cameras in large police departments.” The Journal of Criminal Law and Criminology, 106, 729–768.
Barak Ariel, William Farrar, & Alex Sutherland. 2015. “The effect of police body-worn cameras on use of force and citizens’ complaints against the police: A randomized controlled trial.” Journal of Quantitative Criminology, 31, 509–535.
Chiefs, Major Cities. 2015. “Major cities chiefs and major county sheriffs survey of technology needs—body-worn cameras.”
Cynthia Lum, Megan Stoltz, Christopher Koper, & Amber Scherer. 2015. “Existing and ongoing body worn camera research: Knowledge gaps and opportunities.” Center for Evidence-Based Crime Policy, George Mason University.
Eric Hedberg, Charles Katz, & David Choate. 2016. “Body-worn cameras and citizen interactions with police officers: estimating plausible effects given varying compliance levels.” Justice Quarterly, 34(4), 1–25.
Janne Gaub, David Choate, Natalie Todak, Charles Katz, & Michael White. 2016. “Officer perceptions of body-worn cameras before and after deployment: A study of three departments.” Police Quarterly, 19(3), 275-302.
Janne Gaub, Natalie Todak, & Michael White. 2020. “One size doesn’t fit all: The deployment of police body-worn cameras to specialty units.” International Criminal Justice Review 30(2), 136-155.
Justin Ready & Jacob Young. 2015. “The impact of on-officer video cameras on police–citizen contacts: Findings from a controlled experiment in Mesa, AZ.” Journal of Experimental Criminology, 11, 445–458.
Michael White, Janne Gaub, & Natalie Todak. 2018. “Exploring the potential for body-worn cameras to reduce violence in police–citizen encounters.” Policing: A Journal of Policy and Practice, 12, 66–76.
Shelly Hyland. 2018. “Body-worn cameras in law enforcement agencies, 2016. U.S. Department of Justice.” Bureau of Justice Statistics.
