Date of Award

12-2020

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Education (EdD)

Department

Executive Leadership

First Supervisor

Dr. Anthony Chiarlitti

Second Supervisor

Dr. Phillip Rothman

Abstract

The use of body-worn cameras (BWC) by law enforcement organizations has continued to expand across the United States. The ability for BWC to bring about transparency, trust, and accountability between police and citizens has been touted as one of the significant benefits of BWC deployment. The assignment of BWC to uniformed officers has been a topic of multiple empirical studies. However, there has been a paucity of research directly focused on officers assigned to specialized plain-clothes enforcement, also known as anti-crime teams. These officers carry out a unique mission and purpose compared to their uniformed colleagues. The author utilized a quantitative methodology approach to conduct a correlational study of archived arrest data for the sample group. Participants completed an online survey which was used to collect descriptive data and perceptions for each respondent regarding BWC. This study examined the perceptions of BWC by anti-crime officers and identified if the assignment of a BWC has any effect on their collective arrest activity. The results from this study identified that BWC do have an effect on arrest activity by specialized anti-crime officers. Annual arrest by the officers exhibted a significant decrease. However, perceptions of the BWC were positive overall by study participants. Results from this study will aid law enforcement executives as they consider the deployment of BWC to officers in specialized plain clothes units as well as policy considerations for this specific group.

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