Lights, Camera, Inaction: Body-Worn Camera Research in Canada

• In Event: Studies of Body Worn Cameras in Policing

Abstract

The implementation of body-worn cameras (BWCs) is an emerging trend in operational policing. While studies have examined their impact on issues including the use of force, and citizen complaints in the United States, their utility remains under-researched in Canada. In 2014, a Canadian multi-site study of the impact of BWCs was proposed. The study hoped to offer a comprehensive evaluation of all facets of the uses and impacts of BWCs, including the impact this technology has on police, police decision-making, the criminal justice system, and other dimensions, as well as the public’s view of BWCs. Despite varying levels of agency ‘buy-in’, police union support, and the collaboration of leading Canadian police researchers, the study was terminated in 2016.
The present paper details the barriers faced by researchers with respects to the implementation of BWCs for the purpose of the proposed study. Among these are issues associated with privacy and disclosure, agency involvement, Crown and the perceived burden the technology might place on the judiciary, and the lack of communication between stakeholders. The lessons learned from the termination of this study emphasize the challenges associated with the introduction of BWCs, and serve as a tool to inform future research.

Authors

• Hilary Ellen Marta Todd, Simon Fraser University

• Joshua J. Murphy, Simon Fraser University