Think the Police Should Wear Body Cameras? That Will Cost Taxpayers Extra.
The Police Department in Worcester, Mass., could serve as Exhibit A in favor of body cameras for officers.
Plagued by allegations that officers planted evidence, stole drug money and coerced sex in prostitution cases, the 450-officer department learned last November that it was facing a federal civil rights investigation like those launched in Minneapolis, Louisville, Ky., and most recently Memphis.
Elected officials in Worcester had been trying for years to put a body camera program in place, and the Police Department ran a pilot that ended in 2020. But when the city announced that the program would finally begin in earnest in February, the police unions balked, saying they wanted extra pay for wearing the recording devices.
Worcester agreed to pay each rank-and-file officer an annual stipend of $1,300, and the city’s lawyer told the City Council’s 11 members that they were “legally obligated” to approve the payments.
At the vote in May, Etel Haxhiaj, one of three councilors who opposed the stipend, said it flew in the face of the accountability people were demanding.
“I cannot imagine that when community members called for police transparency and justice, beyond body cams, that they envisioned that it would come with a reward.”
The union in Worcester was not the only police labor group looking to leverage demands for accountability. In towns and cities across the country, police unions have been asking for pay bumps for body cameras, seeking to capitalize on the growing public expectation that every encounter with the police will be recorded.
Officers in Las Vegas were among the first to win a raise that explicitly paid them to wear cameras, while unions in New York City, Seattle, Cincinnati and other cities have used body cameras as a bargaining chip in negotiations that led to significant raises. And more recently the police departments for Nassau County, N.Y., and the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey agreed to $3,000 annual body camera bonuses.
“It’s literally laughable how the situation has been manipulated by the unions,” said Charles Katz, a criminologist at Arizona State University, noting that the cameras have been shown to reduce the number of misconduct complaints against officers. “Which other pieces of equipment that protect officers’ careers and lives have they charged extra for? They’re not charging extra for Kevlar vests.”
In lobbying local government officials and labor regulators, unions have argued that a pay bump compensates them for the added responsibility and loss of privacy that comes from wearing cameras. But publicly, they have said little about why officers should be paid more.
In Worcester, Officer Dan Gilbert, the union president, did not respond to attempts to reach him.
Cameras are generally activated during law enforcement operations like responding to emergency calls or conducting investigations, not during roll call or meal breaks. Some more recent models activate automatically in certain situations, such as when officers draw their guns.
The only union I've ever wanted dissolved is the police union.
Cities should have just defunded the police departments that refused to wear body cameras.
Agreed. They should just shut down the police department and start over in most cities. Police forces are like the only labor force that has no business being a strong union.
Why not?
They were created to keep labor from striking or standing up for themselves.
Police were not solely created to stop strikes...
Pinkerton used to hunt down runaway slaves. Police are what that practice evolved into.
Northern cities had police forces that did not originate with the Pinkertons. The structure of modern policing largely comes from the Pinkertons but the goals go back centuries more of constables and nightwatchmen
“The structure of modern policing largely comes from the Pinkertons”
“Police are what that practice (pinkertons) evolved into.”
These points don’t disagree.
But it does contradict "police were created to stop strikes"
That’s why I said striking and standing up for themselves. Slaves that weren’t meek and obedient, runaways, or people who wanted better lives.
Again, that's not why police were created. An apartment building and a hotel can be similar structures without having the same purpose. Emulating a successful structure of another entity doesn't mean you have the same purpose of that entity.
But it does contradict "police were created to stop strikes"
I just had a weird idea. What if we flip it. Pay cops more. Better vacations, more support. Sure pay them for the cameras, call it whatever. Tax the rich and pay these working class people that kinda seem to be exploited. Maybe they’d be less angry and less likely to take it out on us.
Isn’t their pay absolute crap? Like, I don’t have a problem setting a minimum salary of $65k for cops and teachers too. I’m pretty sure the averages are well below this. I guess it never occurred to me to think that some cops are facing food and living security issues themselves if they have a family and barely make $35k.
No, it really isn't in most places. Average in the US is over $61k and in places like CA, it's over $100k.
I live in Kansas, where the cost of living is relatively low compared to the rest of the country. 1st year officers make $59k. They best paid officers are paid $89k. Plus very good benefits.
No, pay for cops is quite reasonable and in some cases exorbitant because of how they can rack up overtime. They are paid plenty well. It's the training, oversight, and discipline that are lacking.
They also get great benefits and get to retire early with an actual pension. It's a pretty cushy job already.
Cops actually make a very good salary for a "unskilled" job. They're paid well above the average income in all but the most affluent areas. Not uncommon for average police income to be over 100k. They often get to rack up a ton of BS overtime pay which is some of it. Most cities require you hire a police officer who will get paid overtime on your dime for security or to direct traffic at certain events. They often get the OT pay and don't even show up, or just nap in their car the whole time.... It's great.
The police in America are the well paid class traitors who get to beat on us for the rich. They throw them enough bones to keep them going. It's all working as intended.
You’re right. The median appears to be around 50-60k which is pretty good. I thought they were much lower. I guess scrap that idea. Seems like they got inflation-adjusted wages over the past 20 years while the rest of us just got inflation and a smaller box of cookies.
Yup, police unions show us how effective unions are.... Good pay that keeps pace with inflation. Advancement opportunities, pension, good healthcare. Oh, and you get to beat people to a pulp whenever you feel like getting a paid vacation.
My city starts pay for cops at $70k. You have to pass the academy, during which you get the pay and benefits, but all you need to apply is a high school diploma and no record. Pretty good pay to me.
I can't say fornthe rest of the country but Seattle pays its officers well and we still have to deal with crap from them.
Just moved here last year and am a white guy so obviously my experience is gonna be different, but while the cops here still suck, I have noticed them to be far less visible and prevalent than in the south where I lived for 35 years
Where Im at the police and fire make much more than the typical person. Teachers not so much but they still do better than the typical person. Would not mind all the city workers being on the same pay scale whatever they do. Maybe hazard pay but for that to kick in you have to be shot at before shooting your own piece or as a fire fighter go into a burning building at least once that particular month.