Bodycams alone do not protect rescuers from attacks
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Body cams are only part of the solution
On the move with a mobile body camera: a police officer.
© Source: Martin Schütt/dpa
It sounds so simple: Bodycams are intended to protect rescue workers from uninhibited targeted violence, which has lost all measure of rationality anyway. Unfortunately, this way of thinking falls far short, because a camera alone will never deter all violent criminals. And yet the proposal to equip the police and firefighters with mobile cameras is overdue. Even if there are many points that need to be clarified, the following still applies: If you risk your life to save others, every means must be used to protect you optimally. These bad scenes on New Year’s Eve leave no doubt about action. And here bodycams can actually be a good tool to identify perpetrators and, in the best case, to have a preventive effect.
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However, clear guidelines are needed. The perspective from which we are currently discussing only focuses on the rescuers. But what if a police officer misbehaves? When does the camera have to run? Only when it becomes the wearer? There is currently a clear consensus in Germany on the “if”. In order to gain lasting acceptance, however, the “how” must be clarified quickly. And most importantly, those who attack rescue workers must be made aware immediately that severe sanctions will follow.