Law & Justice: May 2008 Archives
Unlike many law-and-order conservatives, I'm tentatively in favor of mounting cameras on police weapons if the civilian political leaders think it would improve law enforcement.
New York police officers could carry mini-cameras on their guns under a proposal to bolster public confidence following a spate of controversial shootings.The device, whose introduction is gaining support among state politicians, would create a visual and audio recording of police shootings for use in court.
Officers would not be able to tamper with the five-ounce camera which works by shooting out a bright red laser light at whatever is in the gun barrel’s path within two seconds of the weapon being drawn. The camera would continue to operate for up to an hour.
The laser light could only be switched off if might expose the officer to danger in a dark area. The camera footage could also be used to identify suspects.
I am a big supporter of police, and think they do a wonderful job 99% of the time, but I also realize that some jurisdictions have social/political considerations that put police in as much danger as criminals do. These cameras could exonerate police who are harassed by trouble-makers for justified uses of force.
Furthermore, I think the trend towards paramilitary police units is dangerous, and these sorts of cameras could encourage more careful police work.
Everyone hates red-light traffic cameras, and someone in Arizona decided to do something about them by re-aiming cameras at the ground.
Someone in Tucson isn't happy about the city's red-light cameras.A vandal re-aimed most of the traffic cameras at collision-prone intersections over the weekend in an apparent attempt to keep them from snapping photos of speeders and red-light runners, an official said.
This doesn't strike me as "vandalism" since there was no damage or defacement. What this looks like to me is civil disobedience.
It would be more efficient, though, to use some sort of spraying device to shoot paint at the camera lens from the ground or from a car. Not that I'd advocate such a thing.
(HT: Instapundit.)
No doubt Barack Obama is poised to announce either a more diplomatic approach or a total withdrawal from his home city:
Fifty-four shootings in two weekends. Shot-up bodies recovered in groups of three and five. Is this Ramadi? Basra? No.Welcome to Chicago.
After a recent outbreak of gun-related violence, Mayor Richard Daley is now pushed into supporting a plan by new Police Superintendent Jody Weis to arm 13,000 Chicago police officers with assault rifles. Depending on how many weapons are eventually deployed, this may develop into the largest militarization of police patrol officers in United States history. If the department arms 10,000 of their officers with M4s, the police will have 9,900 more assault rifles in Chicago than the U.S. Marines presently have in Fallujah, Iraq.
Advice to Senator Obama as he aspires to run a whole country: Physician, heal thyself.
(HT: Instapundit.)
