A dash camera for car use can be a very useful tool for police officers and other law enforcement agents today, and a number of statistics for police work have demonstrated that a dash camera for car work can make a situation safer and smoother for everyone involved. A similar concept is putting body cams on police officers and state troopers while they are on the job, and the benefits of police body cameras have also been made clear. A police agency may consider body camera costs or the budget for buying a dash camera for car use for each police cruiser, and get the benefits that come with these devices. Just how can a body-worn camera or dash cams make a difference for today’s police officer?
Rats of Camera Use
The use of a dash camera for car work is hardly new, nor is it obscure; many police agencies are already using them across the United States. as of 2013, the worldwide dashboard camera market (police and otherwise) had reached a value of $1.458 billion, and experts say that it may grow at a compound annual growth rate of 15.3% from 2014 to 2020. And as of March 2015, for another example, one in three of the 18,000 police departments across the United States were making use of body cameras, and given the advantages of using such devices, this rate may increase in the near future. Recent years have also shown higher rates of a dash camera for car use being tried out by police officers. In the year 2000, only 11% of state police and highway patrol vehicles had in-car cameras installed in them, for a total of about 3,400 vehicles. Now, the total is much higher, and about 72% of all state patrol vehicles and others make use of in-car video systems. What benefit are the police and the public alike seeing from having a dash camera for car use by law enforcement agents?
Safer Rates
Often, making use of a dash camera for car work or a body cam on police officers has had positive results. Among police officers surveyed in 2015, for example, respondents said that they were 25.2% more likely to consider these devices as helpful whenever they interact with the public, and this may be good for both cooperation between police and civilians and preventing danger. After all, a recent Pew Research Center survey of 8,000 police officers found that 93% believe that their job may be considered more dangerous now than before. The Pew Research Center has conducted similar surveys to find that both police and the public consider body cameras (and possibly dash cams) make the job smoother and safer for everyone involved.
For one thing, 66% of officers and 92% of civilians surveyed by the Pew Research Center felt that the use of body cameras by police officers favor the use of body cams on police officers, and 50% of police officers, fully half, feel that these body cams make police more likely to behave appropriately. Finally, 52% of police department administrators said that they consider police body cameras central to making the public more likely to cooperate with offers while the officers are on the job.
A dash cam for car work can have a similar effect for police officers and civilians alike, and an advantage of a car dash cam is that it can cover a wide area and it is holding still. What is more, this camera’s view is not affected by what direction the police officer is facing, and it can show everyone involved in a situation. Such cams are also useful in case there is use of force involved in an interaction on any party’s account, and the recordings by a dash cam can be used in court against whoever used great force during a case. This can be useful if a civilian assaults an officer and later denies it, and conversely, this cam can record police using inappropriate use of force. Various parties would be interested in making use of a dash cam’s recordings, and if everyone knows that the cam is there, they are more likely to be calm and cooperative. If not, video evidence of violence will exist for use later.