Next time a Los Angeles police officer talks to you, you might be on camera. For Phase I, 825 are already on order, and plans call for 7000 LA cops to hit the streets with body cams. But the Commission insists they won't be on the streets until it's clear that the constitutional rights of citizens—and officers—can be protected, and the rules of usage are still being worked out. Where will the video be kept? For how long? Who gets to see it? When can an officer turn the thing off? In the City of Rialto, complaints against officers are down 88% since body cams were adopted. Will the same thing happen in LA? Tonight and tomorrow, the Police Commission is holding hearings to get public input. We get a preview.
The LAPD Prepares to Wear Body Cameras
Credits
Guests:
- Steve Soboroff - Los Angeles Police Commission - @SteveSoboroff
- Melina Abdullah - professor in the Department of Pan-African Studies at Cal State LA and an organizer of the Black Lives Matter movement - @DocMellyMel
- Peter Bibring - ACLU of Southern California - @PeterBibring
- Timothy Clemens - Open-government activist and computer programmer