The accountability challenge for BWV

While evidence to support the use of body-worn video (BWV) cameras by police officers is overwhelming, the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) has warned that it should not be seen as the panacea for policing.

Speaking at the Police Federation of England and Wales (PFEW) annual conference in Bournemouth last month, IPCC Commissioner Carl Gumsley cautiously welcomed officers wearing BWV to film incidents, but stressed: “It is a tool, not a complete solution.”

He said the IPCC was “anxious” that the problems associated with body-worn cameras did not outweigh the benefits. He said there are still questions to be answered around unjustified filming and the invasion of people’s privacy particularly in some cultures.

Mr Gumsley said suspicions could be further fuelled if the camera is not turned on or does not work. There were also issues surrounding the fact people complain about the police up to 12 months after an incident, but film footage is deleted after 31 days.

He said good training, using other evidence in addition to the footage and proper equipment would be essential to ensure “the negatives did not take overtake the positives”.

However, the PFEW’s Sergeants’ Regional Representatives chair Doug Campbell called the introduction of BWV “a no brainer”, but warned it must not be used to replace officers, while Andy Marsh, chief constable of Hampshire Constabulary and national lead for BWV, is a major advocate of body-worn cameras and believes they “will change the criminal justice system for the better”.

Hampshire Constabulary, which is planning to deploy 2,800 BWV cameras to its frontline officers, was the first UK force to have made the cameras standard personal-issue for all frontline police officers and police community support officers in one of its districts, the Isle of Wight, as part of the force’s Operation Hyperion with support from supplier Reveal Media.

Research from the University of Portsmouth’s Institute of Criminal Justice Studies found that public order and assault crimes went down by almost 20 per cent as a result.

Lead researcher Tom Ellis said: “The impact the cameras had on public order and assault was quite impressive – a sure sign that they are extremely effective at reducing certain types of crime.”

Hampshire police and crime commissioner Simon Hayes said the report provided “irrefutable evidence and compelling support for investment in BWV”.

Inspector Stephen Goodier, lead officer for Hampshire’s BWV project, estimates that more than 30,000 cameras will be in use by officers across the UK by the end of 2016, making the UK a world leader in this field.