Sachs Poll: FL Supports Cameras on Police

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Sachs Poll: FL Supports Cameras on Police

More than two-thirds (68 percent) of likely Florida voters believe police officers should wear live, body-mounted cameras while on duty to give photographic evidence of their interactions with the public, according to a recent Sachs Media Group/ Mason-Dixon poll. The results also showed that 100 percent of African-Americans surveyed believe body cameras should be required on law enforcement officers, as do 71 percent of Hispanics and 62 percent of Whites.

“Floridians believe the truth may be best served by having photographic evidence about police/public interaction – so that if and when there are disputes over what happened, the pictures may tell the story best,” said Ron Sachs, President and CEO of Sachs Media Group. “The technology exists to take such steps – as with police cruiser dashboard cams – so the issue becomes not what it costs, but what it may save: public trust and the truth.”

The Florida poll results reflect heightened concerns over recent tensions involving the shooting of an unarmed African-American teenager in Ferguson, Missouri, by a police officer last month. The national public outcry prompted a petition to the White House signed by more than 150,000 people, urging  “all state, county, and local police to wear a camera.”

According to the Sachs Media poll, more than four out of five Democrats and half of Republicans surveyed supported body-mounted cameras.

In the first year of implementing policies requiring all police officers to wear body-mounted cameras, cities in California saw a 60-percent reduction in the use of force by officers and a corresponding decrease of 88 percent in complaints filed against officers.

To download the complete poll results and cross tabulations, visit https://sachsmedia.com/pollresults-download/.

ABOUT THE POLL
The Sachs Media Group/Mason-Dixon poll was conducted from Sept. 2 through Sept. 8, 2014. A total of 625 likely 2014 general election voters were contacted statewide by telephone. The margin for error is no more than ±4 percentage points.