[conkrete]

I would think with current technology, an always-recording system could be put into place at a fairly low cost. Certainly an interesting idea for anyone looking for a new starup idea involving cameras and bullet proof vests.

[maxerickson]

With the police unions fighting it every step of the way.

I think the effort is better spent making the equipment reliable and easy to use, and then making it widely available. Then when an officer chooses not to use it, you can ask them why they made that choice. People might believe lots of things the first few thousand times, but eventually it will make the officer look pretty bad if they walked into an adverse situation without their documentation device running.

I also sort of like that this preserves some discretion for the officer; if I can't trust them to have a reasonable amount of discretion, I don't think I can trust them at all, and I don't think technology is going to help me with that.

[thaumasiotes]

> People might believe lots of things the first few thousand times, but eventually it will make the officer look pretty bad if they walked into an adverse situation without their documentation device running.

This isn't some hypothetical about the future. What you describe is very common today, with no loss of credibility having attached to the police.

[maxerickson]

No, I'm pretty sure police don't have universal access to (reliable, effective) recording devices.

I'm also pretty sure that large segments of the population don't trust them at all.

[harlanlewis]

Indeed. The Ferguson police in fact have a couple dashboard cameras and body cameras for officers to wear, however none have been installed due to the $3k/per expense (no link, easy to google).

It's staggering how low accountability is on law enforcement's priority list, especially given the amount of money available for "crowd control" military hardware.

[thaumasiotes]

> It's staggering how low accountability is on law enforcement's priority list

Huh? Why would they want to be accountable? Accountability would be a priority of the populace.

[harlanlewis]

Priorities can be mandated. Dealing with externally-set priorities is a fairly regular subject on this very forum (damn you, marketing!).

No government agency should be solely responsible for selecting what is and is not its job.

[fnimick]

Of course accountability isn't a priority. Their priority is to arrest and detain as many people as they can, and being accountable might cut into their revenue.