Body worn video (police equipment) prepared for the United States Department of Justice in 2016 is that body worn cameras "are cameras with at least one microphone and internal data storage, and allow audio/video footage to be stored and analyzed with compatible software. The cameras are typically located on the police officer's chest or head". Wearable cameras are often utilized by law enforcement to record their interactions with the public or gather video evidence at crime scenes. Current body cameras are much lighter and smaller than the first experiments with wearable cameras as early as 1998. There are several types of body cameras made by
Body worn video has been able to close on average approximately 20% more cases with video evidence than without. Early research based on pilot projects has sometimes shown significant positive results. But the first meta-evaluation that was published in 2014 warned that more research is needed. This meta-evaluation was based on five evaluations from body camera projects in the United Kingdom (Plymouth 2007 and Renfrewshire/Aberdeen 2011) and the United States (Rialto, Mesa and Phoenix – all published in 2013). Most of these studies documented a reduction in complaints against the police and, in some cases, similar reductions in use of force and assaults