When the word of an officer is worth more than the word of a member of the public being able to record the officer in the course of their work is the only way to defend yourself. Yes this might lead to an increase in people getting off on technicalities but saying that is a good enough reason to turn law enforcement into an entity above reproach is very dangerous.
The ability for the courts or police to shutdown any practical oversight by members of the public turns changes the power dynamic completely. Any person is one pissed off cop away from having to deal with being arrested. It becomes a big game of chance. The (vast) majority of the time we don't interact with cops/the courts, the (vast) majority of cops are concerned about the general good and protecting people but even 1% of 1% in a country this big leads to a lot of hardship.
The 1% of 1% is so damaging..it can effect lives, and those around those lives. The problem, to me, is the "blue line" of protectionist policies of departments, which, camera's would never be an issue if this was not the case.
The ability for the courts or police to shutdown any practical oversight by members of the public turns changes the power dynamic completely. Any person is one pissed off cop away from having to deal with being arrested. It becomes a big game of chance. The (vast) majority of the time we don't interact with cops/the courts, the (vast) majority of cops are concerned about the general good and protecting people but even 1% of 1% in a country this big leads to a lot of hardship.