NYPD has a pretty long legacy of violence against its citizens of color, but that may be difficult going forward.
Certain officers in specific areas will begin to wear body cameras as of January 2015. The move is to counter and document shootings that have happened under suspicious conditions.
“It’s a controlled setting. You know they’re being done, and where they’re being done. And there’s even the possibility they can be used to document some of the conditions in the buildings,” a rep for the NYPD told the New York Daily News.
New York is in line with the way the country is moving.
Taser, a company know for stun guns, reports that body camera sales are up 30% since the third quarter, according to a CNN report. The upward trend started before unarmed Mike Brown was killed by Ferguson officer Darren Wilson. Another company, Digital Ally, reports similar surges in body cameras, attributed to police departments world wide.
Hopefully the change will keep police accountable and save lives of unarmed citizens.