But experts remain at odds over whether those cameras will improve transparency and accountability in police interactions with civilians.

Police body cameraspros and cons

Alain Babineau, a former RCMP officer and advisor with the Center for Research-Action on Race Relations, has long pushed for police use of body cameras in Montreal.

A better approach than cameras, McClelland argued, would be to financially incentive police officers to not engage in excessive use of force, noting that police officers often get put on paid leave during investigations and are able to get rehired in other police services after getting fired, in some cases.

Police body camerasStatistics

While studies of body-worn cameras have been conducted globally, the data that’s out there is “inconclusive,” said Alexander McClelland, a post-doctoral fellow in the University of Ottawa’s department of criminology.

“The data is inconclusive to show that body cameras decrease violent incidents with police,” McClelland said, noting the data for Canada remains limited.

Benefitsof police body cameras

Tracy Wing, whose son Riley Fairholm was shot and killed by Quebec provincial police in the Eastern Townships in 2018, said she favours wider police use of cameras — on dashboards at the very least.

One major study out of Washington, D.C. concluded that law enforcement agencies considering the use of body-worn cameras should not expect “large, department-wide improvements in outcomes.”

“I think we’ve come to a point now where those in decision making positions are actually listening and that is, to me, a watershed moment,” Babineau said.

In Canada, calls for more body cameras have been directed at both local and national police following the death of a Toronto woman who fell from her balcony after officers were called to her apartment in late May, as well as the violent arrest of an Inuk man by an RCMP officer in Nunavut.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said on Monday he wants the RCMP to use body-worn cameras and that he will push Canada’s premiers later this week “about the need to move forward on measures like body cameras” within provincial and municipal police services, too.

— With files from Global News’ Abigail Bimman, Craig Lord, Crystal Oag, Dan Spector, Heide Pearson, Nick Westoll and Ryan Rocca

In Montreal, renewed pressure is mounting on the city to equip police with body-worn cameras. Meanwhile, Quebec’s provincial police force bought 169 body cameras and 33 dashboard cameras three years ago but has yet to use them, as Global News reported on June 5.

Police body camerasarticles

The cameras aren’t widely used in Canada at this time, but advocates and policy experts have mixed reviews on how effective they’d be if deployed more extensively.

That said, Babineau emphasized that “very rigorous policy” needs to govern the use of the cameras, including whether they remain on at all times or are automatically triggered on and off.

Pros and consof police body camerasEssay

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“I also know from some experience that video evidence can be the best possible evidence to give us all and the public a better understanding of exactly what transpired,” Blair said.

McClelland added he’s also concerned that the information collected by the cameras could be “weaponized” against marginalized communities that have frequent run-ins with police and violate privacy rights. A study out of Montreal found the cameras didn’t improve people’s trust in police, he said.

Other police departments have piloted body-worn cameras but haven’t moved forward with their use. Some, like Toronto, did recommend their use, but others didn’t — like Montreal, who cited the cost.

The University of Toronto examined 10 camera experiments in six jurisdictions, mostly in the U.K., and found “no overall impact on police use of force,” on average.

On Tuesday, Public Safety Minister Bill Blair — who formerly served as Toronto’s police chief — said the cameras can be useful.

Why shouldpolicewearbody cameras

Babineau emphasized that body-worn cameras are “not a silver bullet” but said they’re one of a number of tools that police departments should be employing. He called for “over-arching” zero-tolerance policies on racial profiling within police agencies, from the recruitment to pension phases.

There’s an “erosion of public trust” in police at this time and the cameras can only serve to “enhance” trust in law enforcement, Babineau said.

The Canadian Civil Liberties Association also said it has “serious questions” about the privacy implications of the cameras, citing their potential use in people’s homes or during mental health calls in which individuals might be in distress.

Historyof police body cameras

The Calgary Police Service is so far the only major police force in the country that has equipped all its front-line officers with the tool. The police force implemented the service-wide roll out last year.

Recent violent and fatal incidents involving police in Canada and the United States have prompted louder calls for more widespread use of body cameras by police in order to combat alleged brutality and racism.

But in the last few weeks, many municipal police chiefs have pledged to revisit the tool. Outgoing Toronto Police Chief Mark Saunders has said he’s trying to speed up the roll-out of the cameras following the death of 29-year-old Regis Korchinski-Paquet.

She agreed the cameras could encourage both police officers and citizens to keep their behaviour “in check” and provide an additional account of how events transpired.

In Ottawa, where the head of the police union supports using body cameras, the police service said it will consider the tool in exploring ways “improve public trust.” Meanwhile, residents from Nova Scotia to British Columbia have signed petitions called for their police force to adopt the cameras.

Research on body-worncamerasand law enforcement

The cameras can help to document incidents of racism but they don’t “stop the underlying patterns of racism,” McClelland argued, citing another study on traffic stops out of Oakland.

Minneapolis police officers involved in the fatal arrest of George Floyd, an unarmed Black man, were wearing body cameras, McClelland noted.

“The reality is that having a camera pointed at individuals also affects their behaviour, their level of comfort with police and potentially the outcome of the interaction for the individual who’s in contact with police,” said Brenda McPhail, director of the association’s privacy, surveillance, and technology project.

Just west of the city, Peel Regional Police said last week they’ve kick-started a process to implement the cameras, citing recent events.