This White House Petition For a ‘MIKE BROWN LAW’ Would REQUIRE Cops to WEAR A CAMERA On Duty

[Segami]

A new petition on the Whitehouse.gov site has reached more than the necessary number of signatures to receive an official response from the government. The petition is calling for the creation of a, “Mike Brown Law,” which would require officers active on duty to wear a helmet or body camera that would record their interactions with the public at all times. The idea is not new. In 2012, Rialto, California adopted a policy essentially the same as the proposed Mike Brown Law. The city began requiring police officers on duty to start wearing small cameras that could be attached either to an officer’s sunglasses or collar. The cameras cost about $900 dollars each. They can hold up to 12 hours of full color footage and upload their footage via a cloud system. After one year researchers found that after requiring the Rialto police to wear the cameras complaints against officers from citizens dropped by 88% and “use of force” dropped by 59% of the policy yields similar results on a nation-wide basis. Mike Brown or many of the nearly 5,000 other Americans killed by the police between 2003 and 2009 could still be alive today had a nationwide policy that produces a 59% “use of force” decrease.


The idea is very popular. In just six days the petition has received approximately, 123,000 signatures. The threshold a petition must receive to have an official response from the Obama administration is 100,000 signatures in 30 days. The language of the petition reads as follows,

“Create a bill, sign into law, and set aside funds to require all state,county, and local police, to wear a camera. Due to the latest accounts of deadly encounters with police, We the People, petition for the Mike Brown Law. Create a bill, sign into law, and set aside funds to require all state,county, and local police, to wear a camera.The law shall be made in an effort to not only detour police misconduct(i.e. brutality, profiling, abuse of power), but to ensure that all police are following procedure, and to remove all question, from normally questionable police encounters. As well, as help to hold all parties within a police investigation, accountable for their actions.”

http://www.addictinginfo.org/2014/08/19/camera-petition-cops/

[Hoyt]

1. Support to the max. Anyone who carries a gun should wear one.

[Uncle Joe]

2. Kicked and recommended.

Thanks for the thread, Segami.

[oldandhappy]

3. Great. I clicked hoping there would be a link so I could sign. Already enough have signed!!

[Stellar]

11. I just signed anyway.

There can never be enough signatures for something so important.

The camera was something that Obama started here in Chicago once they get people in the Police station. But the Police - the guy that carries a gun - should where them everywhere he goes.

[Hoyt]

4. Seriously, I would like to see one negative to police wearing recorders.

The only negative I can see is that some policefolks might not last long with them. I think everyone would benefit.

[Cali_Democrat]

5. Yup. nt

[Recursion]

9. Privacy violations of the people they deal with

I'm for police always having cameras, but that's the one big concern I have.

[Hoyt]

13. Good point. I think the data should be protected like nedical info except in situations like Brown.

I agree, stuff shouldn't end up on Facebook. Perhaps have some panel allowed access in event of a challenge.

[Recursion]

15. Right, plus strict criminal penalties if some tech leaks it

But, like I said, that's literally the only downside I can think of, and it seems pretty manageable. And, hell, there's probably even some truth to the cops' claim that it positively affects suspects' behavior too. So much the better.

[Hoyt]

17. It would certainly squash some frivolous complaints.

[leftyohiolib]

18. any server this ends up on would be hackable

[Cali_Democrat]

6. Signed!!!

[tavalon]

7. kicked for more exposure

Sure, it's reached the threshold, but let's send this one to the moon. It's right action.

[hedda_foil]

8. Signed it earlier today. K&R for visibility

[blkmusclmachine]

10. Sounds just like Russia.

[Hoyt]

14. Maybe so, but right now we are acting like South Africa a few decades ago, or even

Nazi Germany. A data recorder is an easy way to prevent some of this stuff.

[Stellar]

12. Great idea!

Thanks for sharing.

[951-Riverside]

16. The Taser Corp thanks you for your support.

When will people get it through their thick heads that cameras mean nothing when cops are never held accountable?


Take a moment to watch these videos...

...NOT ONE COP WAS HELD ACCOUNTABLE! NOT A SINGLE F*CKING ONE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[MohRokTah]

19. Only the DIRTY COPS will oppose this law, the GOOD COPS will WELCOME it. eom