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I read a recent National Post editorial urging police forces to adopt body worn cameras (BWCs) as standard equipment with great interest. I truly believe that BWCs can be an effective tool to bring clarity to some contentious interactions between the police and the public. There are risks, however, to the assumption by some that BWCs will be a saving grace for all.

Following the public outcry after the fatal police shooting of unarmed Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri last fall, many anti-police and some pro-police pundits have asserted the need for all police officers to wear BWCs to improve police accountability and to better assure the public as to the legitimacy of police use of force.

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Many episodes where members of the public have been killed by police have been recorded on public videos, taken from a variety of angles, and/or in some instances captured on police BWCs, but not all.

A resounding hue and cry was heard in North Charleston, South Carolina, on April 4, 2015, after a public video surfaced of Walter Scott being fatally shot in the back while running from police officer Michael Slager, who soon claimed that Scott had tried to take his police Taser. Critics expressed valid fear that, if not for the video recording made by a witness, Slager may well have been believed. The local mayor immediately announced that BWCs would be purchased for all officers, presumably to ensure that all future incidents will be recorded, thereby easing public tension.