Questions arise about effectiveness of body-worn police cameras in Canada

Questions surrounding the death of a man by Winnipeg police are rekindling conversations around the need for officers to wear body cameras.

Police shot and killed a man who they say was holding a weapon outside of a bus shelter. The victim had stabbed an officer in the throat before he was shot by police. The man was taken to a Winnipeg hospital, but later died. The officer, according to police, was also taken to hospital in stable condition.

Videos surfaced online have been viewed by thousands, in which a bystander captured the confrontation between police and the suspect. According to Markus Chambers, who is the chair of the Winnipeg Police Board, the video doesn’t tell the whole story.

“That video doesn't really show the full context of the interaction between the individual and the Winnipeg Police Service,” he says. “Body-worn cameras wouldn't have prevented a situation like this, but would provide accountability on what transpired.”

Chambers did not provide much information as to whether police in Winnipeg will soon wear body cameras.

“This is all part and parcel of a review and evaluation that takes place over a period of time,” he said. “Again, is it making the accountability strides that we are looking for? Is it making policing that much better in terms of looking at all of those interactions that take place and how they can be improved upon?”

Chambers did say police are waiting for feedback now that Manitoba and B.C. RCMP started using body cameras for some of its officers last week.

This is in line with the RCMP’s efforts across the country to be more transparent and accountable, according to that police service at a press conference earlier this month.

“We anticipate the body-worn cameras will deliver tangible benefits to the communities that we serve and improve safety, not only to our officers, but to members of the public,” said Dwayne McDonald, the deputy commissioner for the RCMP’s E Division in B.C. on Nov. 23.

Former Ontario provincial police commissioner Chris Lewis told CTV News that police-worn body cameras are a must for all officers across the country.

“The new technology is a benefit in many ways. Whether it would be digital technology, cameras, audio, better weapons. So how do you not issue those to police services that are trying to do their best to protect themselves and the public?” he said.

Officers in Calgary and Toronto use police-worn body cameras. Lewis says body cameras have proven successful throughout the United States and various spots across Canada and can’t understand why some police services and police associations oppose them.

“The benefits are tremendous to officers,” he said.

“Not only keeping them accountable in terms of what they said but protecting them. When people have threatened them or ultimately taken physical action against them when they have to respond. To have that captured on camera is a huge benefit,” he added.

“It shortens many criminal trials because evidence is gathered and recorded through the camera in the audio piece of it.”

Others, like Christopher Schneider, believe body-worn cameras will not restore trust between police and the public and do not provide the full picture.

“Are the body cameras ever going to give us a full depiction of an incident or a scenario? No,” said Schneider, who is a sociology professor at Brandon University. “Body-worn camera footage is just a piece of a broader puzzle which could help us understand a situation.”

It’s unlikely that the public will ever see much of the footage collected by the body cameras in police interactions due to laws in Canada, but during their national conference, the RCMP said there are rare cases where footage could be released for public interest.

“This will be an incomplete and will always be an incomplete depiction of any incident in which the police are involved in, much like viral videos that go up online,” said Schneider.

“I don’t think rolling out these cameras is necessarily going to lead to restoring trust and confidence in the Winnipeg Police Service or even necessarily in the RCMP.”