Chicago Sun-Times
CHICAGO — In the 1960s, Chicago cops initially griped about having to wear radios on their belts.
In the last decade, some fretted about having to communicate for the first time through laptop computers in their cars.
Now some officers have been resisting the latest police technology: video cameras installed in 340 vehicles.
“For an organization of this size, this is a fundamental change, and it will take a while to be accepted,” said Jonathan Lewin, commander of the Information Technology Section.
Privately, some cops told the Chicago Sun-Times they were ignoring the rule to turn on camera systems because they’re worried their words and actions will come back to haunt them. They explained they sometimes must use harsh language to establish control over people they stop.
But Police Supt. Jody Weis said the video systems are an essential part of the department’s push to make officers accountable.
“I think it’s absolutely critical to have them turned on,” Weis said last week. “Oftentimes, we have allegations where it was an individual’s word vs. the officer’s. In most of the instances, allegations against the officers go away when video evidence is available. It’s unacceptable not to have them turned on.”
A few weeks ago, Weis reminded supervisors to make sure officers are patrolling with their cameras on. An officer must enter his ID into the system to activate the cameras.
The department, meanwhile, has asked Coban Technologies Inc., the manufacturer, to make some fixes.
Soon, supervisors will receive an electronic alert when an officer is patrolling with a turned-off camera. Eventually this year, new hardware will tie the cameras to the ignition. The cameras will turn on when the key is turned, and they will stay on for an hour even if the car is turned off.
Coban will make the changes for free, Lewin said.
About 340 vehicles have two cameras -- one pointing out of the front window and the other aimed at the back seat, where prisoners are transported.
Audio is recorded on traffic stops, but not on other types of street stops, Lewin said.
Illana Rosenzweig, head of the Independent Police Review Authority, said her agency has exonerated cops of false complaints with the videos.
But she also has complained to the department about the lack of video evidence in some cases in which a squad car was equipped with cameras.
And in at least two cases, she said, officers have been disciplined because of in-car cameras.
In one case, a Chicago Police officer was fired for using excessive force while he assisted a State Police trooper on a traffic stop. A State Police camera captured the misconduct, Rosenzweig said.
IPRA also is preparing to recommend discipline for another Chicago Police officer whose misconduct was captured on a Chicago Police in-car camera, she said.
Still, Lewin pointed to a 2005 International Association of Chiefs of Police report that surveyed state police agencies across the country -- and found that 93 percent of the time, an officer is cleared of allegations of misconduct when there’s video evidence available.
The video can be shown to officers in the training academy as an educational tool, too, Lewin said.
Former Police Supt. Terry Hillard first announced plans for pilot tests of cameras in squad cars in 1999, and over the years their use has been expanded. In May 2009, the last of the city’s 25 police districts was equipped with in-camera cars, Lewin said. Some cars in specialized units also have cameras, he said.
Copyright 2010 Chicago Sun-Times