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Body cameras for police officers may get a mention in next week's State of the Union address.
Pretty chilling:
Cops charged after police body cams capture them killing homeless man
Video footage doesn't tell entire story, defense attorney says.
by David Kravets - ars technica Jan 13 2015, 5:22pm CST
Two Albuquerque, New Mexico police officers were charged Monday with suspicion of murder after cop body cams filmed them killing a knife-wielding homeless man who was camping in nearby city hills.
James Boyd, a 38-year-old homeless man, died in March after he was shot by a shotgun, bombarded with shots of nonlethal bean bags and was the target of flash-bang grenades following an hours-long standoff with police. The police said they were dealing with Boyd because he was breaking the law by camping in the Sandia Mountains above the city.
Video captured by officer helmet and body cams showed officers firing at the man, who had two small camping knives in his hand, when he turned his back and even while he was on the ground. As the man was face down after being shot, the authorities unleashed a police dog, which was seen mauling the victim's leg.
The charges come amid an outcry from the public seeking more accountability of officers following the August 9 shooting of unarmed 18-year-old Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri. The shooting, which was not videotaped, has prompted widespread protests and left many, including President Barack Obama, demanding a technological solution.
In response, the Ferguson Police Department began equipping its officers with body cameras so that officers may record their daily patrols. Police departments nationwide have also started using body cameras, and others are exploring the idea. A White House petition with 154,000-plus signatures is demanding that all police in the US "wear a camera."
The New Mexico officers charged with murder allegations are detective Keith Sandy and SWAT team member Dominique Perez.
Sam Bregman, a lawyer for Sandy, said charging the officers was a "terrible, terrible decision" and that there was "not one shred" of evidence to back the charges.
He said the video captured by officer body cams on the scene does not provide an overall picture of the incident.
The victim, who was mentally ill, had an extensive criminal record with run-ins with police officers, including that of police assault, Bregman said. Boyd was also wielding two knives when he was felled by police, the defense attorney added.
Sandy, who is now retired, was "following his training and very likely saved the life of a fellow police officer," Bregman said.
District Attorney Kari Brandenburg said the government's case would be laid out in open court, before a judge, instead of in secret in front of a grand jury. Referencing the Brown shooting and the video-taped arrest that resulted in the death of Eric Garner in New York this summer, she said: "Unlike Ferguson and unlike in New York City, we're going to know. The public is going to have that information."
No court date has been set. The accused remain free.
