Body cameras a success for small airport police force
Dramatic Fall in Complaints
Prompted by Obama's call for a national roll-out of police body cameras, the Washington Post reported in December on their successful use in a regional airport in Missouri. Springfield-Branson is a small airport about 200 miles from Ferguson. Their police officers have been wearing body cameras since 2008. In that time they have seen complaints against their officers plummet – from several a week to reportedly less than one a month. Springfield-Branson offers flights to 11 US cities and police supervisor Kevin Houseman explained how the use of body-mounted video has a dramatic impact on confrontations between the public and his officers.
He said that “people can see the cameras so they act out less. Officers who know they are being recorded tend to be on their best behaviour.” He also pointed out that those disputes that did arise were often settled swiftly once the complainant was shown the footage from an incident.
Trials have undoubtedly shown that the use of body cameras can deescalate tensions at the public interface and this is of considerable interest to the aviation industry. A number of airlines and airport authorities are keen to adopt the technology within their security systems. This is in line with initiatives in adjacent transport security sectors within the UK.
Airport Suppliers
Airport Suppliers is a comprehensive B2B portal that provides a forum for the leading industry contractors along with the latest aviation news. It pulls together operators, vendors, airlines and aviation authorities from across the globe. The PR5 body camera is specifically designed to protect police, transport and civil enforcement officers plus lone workers. Pinnacle Response Ltd is a featured supplier this month and our profile can be viewed here.