Assaulting a police officer has always been a major offense, but technology is making it increasingly difficult to get away with it.
Tech giant Panasonic introduced this morning a wearable video camera system specifically designed for law enforcement officers in the field. It’s intended to capture and store — in a tamper-proof fashion — audio and video evidence.
The goal? An accurate, unbiased record of officer engagements.
And just when you thought Cops couldn’t get more interesting.
Police departments have long used video cameras in their vehicles — abut 60 percent of police departments did in 2011 — but a body-worn camera is a whole new ballgame.
Panasonic’s WVTW310 camera can be used on its own or integrated with the company’s Toughbook Arbitrator SafeServe software. It offers a recording capacity of up to 32 hours (H.264 compression) and a battery life of approximately five hours when continuously recording.
What makes the camera so special? It has extremely wide angle viewing and works day and night.
Panasonic hopes it can give police officers “total situational awareness”; meanwhile, cops just want an easier way to prove that a perpetrator was in the wrong. Either way, this looks like a step up.
The system will be available in the U.S. beginning in July and start around $1,000.
