Lapel cameras for cops shouldn’t be optional

Video lapel cameras for police officers benefit both cops and those they are charged with protecting. The latest proof of the efficacy of cameras came out of northwestern New Mexico, where a veteran police officer was showed pushing an 11-year-old girl against a wall, shoving her to the ground and yelling at her. The incident happened Aug. 27 at Mesa View Middle School and offers a fascinating look into what can go wrong with cops on campus.

We’ve already had the shock of seeing a high schooler tased by a sheriff ’s deputy last spring in Española. We know about both not just because of witnesses but because video exists to show the confrontations. There’s no cop said, student said. There’s the incident in real time, caught on video. In both cases, the officers acted badly. And while two cops can’t be called a trend, their actions are concerning — especially given the age of the Farmington student, who suffered scrapes, bruises and a mild concussion as a result.

Unlike the Rio Arriba County Sheriff ’s

Office, which backed the Taser-wielding deputy, the Farmington Police Department offered no excuses. Farmington police Chief Steve Hebbe said in a statement: “Like many of you, I was shocked and angry when I watched this video.”

What’s more, Hebbe went on to call his own officer a liar. “The officer alleged the student assaulted school staff. This proved not to be true.”

Further, the Farmington department investigated the incident and found that school resource officer Zachary Christensen had violated department policy. He has been forced to resign, and both the police department and the school have apologized. In addition to the chief apologizing, the department shared more than an hour’s worth of footage from Christensen’s body camera to the department YouTube account.

What remains troubling, in addition to the cop’s out-of-control behavior, is why school officials thought a police officer was the key to making a girl behave — she was accused of disrupting class, standing up on the bus and taking too much milk at the cafeteria. Those are hardly crimes, and a child acting out usually benefits more from a counselor or social worker than a cop. The officer even threatened to arrest the child. Interestingly, most reports in New Mexico about the incident did not mention her race; she is black and the officer is white.

It’s also unclear why no criminal charges were filed against Christensen, who appears to be assaulting the girl — investigators with the state police and the San Juan County District Attorney’s Office have said neither the officer nor the student would face criminal charges. She could have faced a resisting arrest charge.

New Mexico Attorney General Hector Balderas did say that his office will be looking into the matter; the AG also filed criminal charges in the case involving the Rio Arriba County deputy. Balderas is right when he repeats — as he has had to too often — that students need to feel safe in school, especially from adults charged with their care.

The cases demonstrate that cameras help clarify tough situations. That’s why it remains baffling that in Bernalillo County, Sheriff Manuel Gonzales is so opposed to deputies wearing lapel cameras — even now, as Bernalillo County Commissioners passed a resolution earlier this month recommending lapel cameras and more dash cameras. They can’t force the sheriff, but commissioners did set aside $3.5 million to pay for the cameras over four years.

It should not be up to the sheriff. Lapel and dash cameras need to be standard equipment for police officers and deputies across New Mexico. If need be, lawmakers at the state level can require the cameras, taking rogue sheriffs out of the equation. Cameras can separate truth from fiction, as well as catch witnesses in lies and protect police officers — it’s not always a cop’s bad behavior that will be caught on camera.

At the Farmington middle school, the officer went over the line. If it weren’t for a camera, we might not know the truth.