"An accurate picture of what occurred:" Technology is changing the game of police surveillance



MILWAUKEE -- Technology is changing the game of police surveillance. Video recording can be both beneficial to both law enforcement and the general public. This, after a woman live-streamed the aftermath of a fatal officer-involved shooting in Falcon Heights, Minnesota.

Body camera



FOX6 News spoke to former police supervisor and a civil rights and personal injury attorney -- both new technology is changing the game but video recording can be beneficial to all involved.

"I can't begin to tell you how drastically it's changed," Associate Dean of Criminal Justice & Homeland Security, Brian Dorow.

Dorow has been in law enforcement for more than 20 years. He began as a Waukesha officer and now trains thousands on how to be one. Dorow says technology and the use of body cameras is now part of their training.

Brian Dorow



"You want an accurate picture of what occurred and these body cameras will prove to be the best way to get these pictures," said Dorow.

Because the video doesn't lie, neither does a civilian's cell phone video -- like the footage captured by a Minnesota woman after her boyfriend was shot by a police officer.

"With the right information you can take a segment of something and make anything look bad," said Dorow.



Dorow says investigations will piece together what happened before and after the shooting, adding that having this footage isn't a bad thing.

"If you're doing what your authorized to do, you're following your rules, you're following the law, you'll never have a problem," Dorow said.

"These cases are often coming down to what the officers say, what witnesses say, and when you have video with people using their cell phones that much  more, it is going to continue to preserve evidence and more and more departments having officers equipped with body cameras will protect officers and people who have legitimate claims to adequately peruse them," said Jon Safran, civil rights and personal injury attorney.

Jon Safran



Both the former officer and attorney FOX6 News spoke with agree that the video recording technology is only good when it's working, and while body cameras are fairly new they suspect, like any technology, it will get better in the years to come.