I had a jury trial and they played my body cam start to finish in front of everyone. All I could think the whole time was "please don't say anything stupid"..... I made it clear that case.
I watched my video as a brand new guy in my first motion to suppress. I had to have said the word "shit" 35 times when talking with the suspect. For the most part now, I do my best to not use bad language. It looks a lot better to the jurors.
That's not necessarily a bad thing, you gotta be able to code switch. The way I talk to grandma and the way I talk to Joe Blow at 2am on an assault call are 2 different ways. If you have a good PA they'll understand and have no issues with it.
I agree about knowing your audience, especially when I was doing interviews as a detective where I felt like the interview could mean more. I just felt it was a little excessive when I was watching it, and I was not happy about it.
I once had a trial where the incident started with me stumbling across someone sleeping butt naked in a parking garage at like 3 in the afternoon. The bodycam started with like fifteen seconds of me sitting in my car grumbling about how stupid I just knew this interaction was going to be.
Body Camera catches a lot of things. It also has limits. I would think out loud on what my plan was while responding to a call. Since the camera cannot hear my inner thoughts, I made it so it could. It doesn't work for everyone, as there are people who for whatever reason cannot think in a PG-13 rating.
When taking someone into custody who is tensing up, the camera can't see that. So, narrative to what is going on. "Stop tensing your arms, relax your arms, by tensing your arms and body you are resisting." I made the body camera an asset.
I've recently started doing that as well, especially on vehicle searches. It's helped during review while writing my reports too, little trick of the trade.
Do you guys have transcribe on evidence.com? Makes it really easy to watch your BWC footage and write you’re statement when you’ve narrated everything to yourself - especially when reviewing a 2+ hour search warrant
This is good advice. My department has a policy against "narrating" while your camera is on. If you turn it into part of the conversation/directives/orders you are giving, you are doing yourself a service down the road when you end up in court.
My speculation would be it could be seen by a defense attorney as trying to create a narrative that may not be true. Their job is to cast a shadow over the evidence and arguments of prosecution, the theory being both sides put forward their arguments and through that conflict the truth emerges. Going back to the tensing example, a defense attorney could argue the officer is saying one thing to try and speak to the monday morning quarterbacks in court, while something completely different is happening that the camera doesn't capture one way or another.
If you say it out loud at the time, it gives the other people there the opportunity to refute what you’re saying. It also creates a contemporaneous record of your observations and beliefs/suspicions. Not allowing officers the opportunity to do this is absolutely mind boggling
Or to capture what the camera can’t see or be more detailed about what I see whether it be property, physical evidence, or something the camera just can’t see due to its location. Just a strange policy.
Something I always seem to notice when reviewing footage is that the camera seems to capture more ambient light compared to what I am able to observe. The tech has exceeded human physiology, so what is created on the hard drive is different than my reality and perception. I should be able to say what I see while the camera is on.
And there are absolutely things that we can see than the cameras rarely, if ever are able to record. HGN being a good example. Every now and then my BWC might pick it up, but most of the time it doesn't even if it has a pretty good angle and lighting to see the person's eye. From what's been explained to me, it has something to do with frame rate iirc.
I agree that a policy forbidding narrating anything is dumb.
Except the police report would also reference the suspect tensing their body in an attempt to resist arrest, which is also entered into as evidence. A defense attorney can make an argument for anything, and often do.
Some guys I worked with started filming themselves and narrating like they were on an episode of cops which I thought was hilarious but could see it resulting in that ridiculous policy.
It also will capture you sexting with your girlfriend, which could be awkward if your wife works in a position where she has to review body cam footage for court cases.
If you're a smaller female with not enough real estate and forced to use one specific vest, you theoretically wouldn't actually have a choice about that. Of course, without a verified account I could never verify that statement.
I had a jury trial and they played my body cam start to finish in front of everyone. All I could think the whole time was "please don't say anything stupid"..... I made it clear that case.
The number of times I have to point to my camera when a co-worker starts to say something stupid ...
There's tens of us!
To be fair, many times people have them on at times they shouldn’t
Or, maybe just assume that someone is always filming and don't say stupid stuff that could jam you up.
I watched my video as a brand new guy in my first motion to suppress. I had to have said the word "shit" 35 times when talking with the suspect. For the most part now, I do my best to not use bad language. It looks a lot better to the jurors.
I call that building rapport
That's not necessarily a bad thing, you gotta be able to code switch. The way I talk to grandma and the way I talk to Joe Blow at 2am on an assault call are 2 different ways. If you have a good PA they'll understand and have no issues with it.
I agree about knowing your audience, especially when I was doing interviews as a detective where I felt like the interview could mean more. I just felt it was a little excessive when I was watching it, and I was not happy about it.
I once had a trial where the incident started with me stumbling across someone sleeping butt naked in a parking garage at like 3 in the afternoon. The bodycam started with like fifteen seconds of me sitting in my car grumbling about how stupid I just knew this interaction was going to be.
(I was correct)
Body Camera catches a lot of things. It also has limits. I would think out loud on what my plan was while responding to a call. Since the camera cannot hear my inner thoughts, I made it so it could. It doesn't work for everyone, as there are people who for whatever reason cannot think in a PG-13 rating.
When taking someone into custody who is tensing up, the camera can't see that. So, narrative to what is going on. "Stop tensing your arms, relax your arms, by tensing your arms and body you are resisting." I made the body camera an asset.
I've recently started doing that as well, especially on vehicle searches. It's helped during review while writing my reports too, little trick of the trade.
Do you guys have transcribe on evidence.com? Makes it really easy to watch your BWC footage and write you’re statement when you’ve narrated everything to yourself - especially when reviewing a 2+ hour search warrant
Unfortunately no, we're a smaller agency of maybe a dozen boots on the ground so resources like that are limited.
This is good advice. My department has a policy against "narrating" while your camera is on. If you turn it into part of the conversation/directives/orders you are giving, you are doing yourself a service down the road when you end up in court.
Why is there a policy against narrating?
My speculation would be it could be seen by a defense attorney as trying to create a narrative that may not be true. Their job is to cast a shadow over the evidence and arguments of prosecution, the theory being both sides put forward their arguments and through that conflict the truth emerges. Going back to the tensing example, a defense attorney could argue the officer is saying one thing to try and speak to the monday morning quarterbacks in court, while something completely different is happening that the camera doesn't capture one way or another.
If you say it out loud at the time, it gives the other people there the opportunity to refute what you’re saying. It also creates a contemporaneous record of your observations and beliefs/suspicions. Not allowing officers the opportunity to do this is absolutely mind boggling
Or to capture what the camera can’t see or be more detailed about what I see whether it be property, physical evidence, or something the camera just can’t see due to its location. Just a strange policy.
Something I always seem to notice when reviewing footage is that the camera seems to capture more ambient light compared to what I am able to observe. The tech has exceeded human physiology, so what is created on the hard drive is different than my reality and perception. I should be able to say what I see while the camera is on.
And there are absolutely things that we can see than the cameras rarely, if ever are able to record. HGN being a good example. Every now and then my BWC might pick it up, but most of the time it doesn't even if it has a pretty good angle and lighting to see the person's eye. From what's been explained to me, it has something to do with frame rate iirc.
I agree that a policy forbidding narrating anything is dumb.
That's another good point. It would be difficult with HGN, but I'll unhook my camera and hold it up during a modified Romberg to show eye fluttering.
It's not a policy I agree with because the camera is a tool that isn't being used to its full potential at that point.
I can see that side of it too. Worth sussing out what the best solution is for everybody.
Except the police report would also reference the suspect tensing their body in an attempt to resist arrest, which is also entered into as evidence. A defense attorney can make an argument for anything, and often do.
Some guys I worked with started filming themselves and narrating like they were on an episode of cops which I thought was hilarious but could see it resulting in that ridiculous policy.
It also will capture you sexting with your girlfriend, which could be awkward if your wife works in a position where she has to review body cam footage for court cases.
That would be what I would call a Woopsie daisy.
That sounds oddly specific
Maybe hes been there done that? Lol
No, definitely wasn't me. I may or may not know someone who may or may not have done that.
I'll take that as a yes.
You can take it however you want, but my wife is a teacher and I have more sense than to fuck up a good marriage by having a girlfriend.
I would never accuse somebody of ever having done that.
Well either that or he has a co worker that did it. Oddly specific for a reason lol.
It does seem to be oddly specific.
I will say I was not involved in it at all.
lol.. didn’t realize what a widespread issue this was.
Not true, mines positioned so it's completely covered by my seatbelt while I'm in my patrol car
Why
Only spot on my uniform to attach it to my vest.
If you position it correctly your seat belt will cover it.
Theoretically.
Please don't do this. It ruins my police activity videos
If you're a smaller female with not enough real estate and forced to use one specific vest, you theoretically wouldn't actually have a choice about that. Of course, without a verified account I could never verify that statement.
It will also capture you in a pursuit driving with your knees, while using the handheld mic and packing a lip.
In my defense it was like a 35 min pursuit. 20 of which were on a highway and the adrenaline had wore off, so tobacco was needed
If you aren't throwing one in while running code are you really even living?
Can’t wait for Tesla self driving tech to be available in the next 10 yrs on a modern cruiser.
If you say “god fucking damnit” after a car gets away from you on bodycam that part gets played for the jury too…
Driving with your knees sounds impressive though
Not again
Mine constantly caught me farting.
My husband’s body cam caught him talking to himself in a French accent in his patrol car after interacting with someone who had a French name
Which is why I don't wear mine while driving /shrug