Is it time for law enforcement to upgrade body-worn tech?

Body-worn cameras have become a critical tool in helping law enforcement better protect their cities. Equipping officers with wearable cameras allows police departments to expand surveillance efforts beyond static, city-wide camera deployments, offering a broader view of what’s happening in their communities.  

Many also advocate that body-worn devices can show what really occurred in a situation and help build more trust between officers and citizens. While that’s often true, it’s important to remember there’s always more to a story than meets the eye. Reviewing evidence from body-worn cameras still requires a good amount of analysis and interpretation to understand the full picture of any situation.  

Unfortunately, this is where some body-wearable camera systems fall short. Being unable to quickly retrieve evidence from cameras and compile cases can cause big delays and frustrations for those who are trying to figure out what happened and help move the judicial processes along. 

Managing the inefficiencies of existing body-wearable camera systems  

Body-worn camera systems in law enforcement have come a long way since inception. That said, police departments that invested in these systems years ago are now facing the limitations of outdated technology.  

Some of these proprietary body-worn camera systems have very limited functionality. If an incident occurs that requires further investigation, officers must bring devices back to docking stations at precincts and then wait hours before data is offloaded and ready for review.  

Even once information is accessible, police officers must manually find and label data. Then, they must compile case files separately by retrieving the relevant body-worn video and any other evidence so it can all be easily accessed later.  

To ensure accuracy and consistency in how video and data are being labeled, some departments will further assign supervisory staff to audit and review those tags. All of that manual effort is time-consuming and drains resources.

Facing the repercussions of not finding and sharing evidence 

It’s not just investigative evidence that requires this due diligence. Under the freedom of information act (FOIA), police departments must be ready to turn over requests for body-worn video within a few business days, depending upon the jurisdiction.  

If information isn’t easily searchable and video analysts are inundated with requests, these departments may not be able to effectively comply with the mandate.  

This not only creates serious liability implications but also negates the very thing that FOIA was meant to do— provide higher levels of transparency to the public.

Dealing with the heavy burden of growing storage costs  

Collecting and managing video from body-worn devices may seem daunting but procuring and maintaining the server infrastructure to store all the data is a massive challenge on its own.  

It’s not just the sheer volume of video and data being collected, but law enforcement agencies must also keep certain video for longer periods, which amps up storage requirements. The cost of storage alone can break budget caps and dissuade some law enforcement agencies from investing in wearable tech altogether.  

What does this all mean for the larger police department who is managing thousands of devices and an inundation of body-worn video? With the wrong technological investments, managing, labeling, retrieving, and storing all this information becomes unnecessarily burdensome and costly.

5 must-haves for a better body-worn camera investment in law enforcement  

Today, there are more advanced, purpose-built body-worn cameras and evidence management systems available that not only make handling case information more fluid and efficient but also help keep overall costs down.  

Whether a police department is switching out an older solution or implementing body-wearable tech for the first time, here are some key criteria that can ease the decision-making process and ensure better investment longevity.  

 

 

1. A solution built for easy evidence management 

Choose a centralized, scalable evidence management solution to easily gather and upload data from any source and store it in one place. This can include body-worn video, smartphone data or video, audio files, pictures, and documents.  

You should also be able to tag locations and keywords to each case file so that it’s easily searchable later on.  

2. Swift handling of evidence from anywhere 

Ensure your officers can securely access the evidence management system from anywhere. This allows responding officers to capture, review and upload video to a case file directly following an incident.  

They can also add notes or other relevant data and then quickly transfer it to in-office colleagues while still in the field.

3. Unified and flexible crime-fighting systems  

Consider an open-architecture system to synchronize the evidence management solution with existing computer-assisted dispatch (CAD) and records management systems (RMS).  

Instead of juggling different applications trying to compile all evidence, your officers can quickly upload data into case files using one application, saving them tremendous time in classifying and managing evidence.  

4. Secure and simple evidence sharing for various types of recipients  

Opt for a body-worn camera system that lets you specify user access and rights for documents and cases. This enhances collaboration with other officers, investigators, or district attorneys, while ensuring the authenticity of evidence through digital audit logs.  

Having the ability to send an email to citizens with a secure link to files further simplifies FOIA requests.

5. Cloud-based storage for all requirements and budgets 

Invest in a cloud-based evidence management system to better handle your body-worn camera storage requirements. A cloud solution allows you to easily increase or decrease your storage capacity, without worrying about buying servers and handling maintenance.  

A cloud-based evidence management system also allows you to switch to a more affordable monthly or annual subscription fee which can ease budget constraints.

Invest in the right body-worn solution from the start 

When it comes to body-wearable camera systems, law enforcement shouldn’t feel hostage to the way things are or were done in the past.  

Modern-day body-worn cameras and evidence management systems can simplify evidence handling at every level, speed up investigations, minimize department headaches, and help you keep costs down over the long run.  

Thinking about investing in body-worn camera technology? Or wondering if there’s a faster, more efficient way to manage your body-worn evidence?