There is no time frame yet for the introduction of police body cameras as the Home Affairs Ministry holds talks on their legal implications.

A spokeswoman for the Home Affairs Ministry said talks were under way with the Data Protection Commissioner and the Attorney General.

"Legal niceties are being ironed out with the Office of the Attorney General so that the use of these cameras will be regulated," she said.

Police unions have called for the introduction of bodycams to safeguard officers from false accusations of improper behaviour.

They reiterated their calls last Friday after a Cambridge University study showed that complaints by members of the public against officers fell by 93 per cent in one year when bodycams were introduced.

Some police officers in Malta have, at their own expense, bought body and dashboard cameras, which they use while on duty.

Body cameras could provide the necessary evidence to solve sticky situations

Inspector Sandro Camilleri from the Police Officer’s Union, an affiliate of the General Workers’ Union, told this newspaper last week that the equipment made officers feel safe.

“In today’s prevalent climate where respect towards police officers has waned and people try to make you out as a liar, body cameras could provide the necessary evidence to solve sticky situations,” he said.

Body cameras are usually small, clip-on devices on the top half of an officer’s uniform, while dashcams stick on the car dashboard.

The Cambridge study was a year-long experiment involving almost 2,000 officers in four UK forces and two US police departments. The findings were labelled dramatic by the researchers. The findings, published in the journal Criminal Justice and Behaviour, showed there were 113 complaints made against officers during the trial period, compared with 1,539 in the 12 months before.

Reacting to the findings, criminologist Saviour Formosa had said the mere presence of a camera helped condition the behaviour of the police officer and the alleged aggressor. It also made police officers more attentive to their behaviour when listening to reports by victims of crime.

Inspector Robert Vella from the Malta Police Association has recommended a pilot study as a first step by equipping police officers on the frontline with body cameras.

kurt.sansone@timesofmalta.com

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