When officer-worn “badgecams” came into general use circa 2020, I think the perception throughout much of the public was that these videos would serve to catch rogue police officers using unnecessary force or otherwise behaving badly. In fact, they have served to illustrate the extremely difficult and dangerous circumstances police officers face every day and have shown how they go to great lengths to avoid the use of force, especially deadly force.
As was the case with the recent tragic shooting of Metropolitan Police Department officer Austin Abdelnabi, these videos often show officers encountering people who are irrational, under the influence or who are intent on “suicide by cop.” This is true not only for the Las Vegas Valley, but across the nation, and these scenarios are repeated again and again. There are a few exceptions, but those are outliers. In the vast majority of cases, law enforcement officers exercise extreme restraint and a genuine respect for human life.
I’d invite anyone who doubts this to watch any of the hundreds of such incidents caught on video that are available via the internet. Badgecams have given the public an inside look into the lives of officers, and their adaptation has been a positive development for us all.
