Baltimore Police officer who planted drugs thinking he turned off body camera charged with tampering with evidence; others cleared

This article describes how the Baltimore police officer whose body camera recorded him planting drugs is being charged with tampering with evidence. The body cam video, which was publicized last summer, shows the officer planting drugs before turning on his camera and finding the drugs he just planted. The officer may not have realized that the cameras are programmed to save the 30 seconds of footage immediately before the camera is activated.

A similar situation happened in LA, where officers planted drugs in a black suspect’s wallet, unaware that their body cameras were recording. Body camera videos are showing that police planting drugs is more common than many people believe. These videos show that body cameras can be a useful tool in exposing police misconduct. However, police officers should not decide when to turn the cameras on and off.