ABSTRACT
This chapter argues that the use of smartphone cameras to film police work addresses these problems in two ways. First, smartphone cameras allow citizens to document police brutality3 which, once shared using social media applications and mainstream media outlets. Second, smartphone cameras allow for the creation of visual evidence which can be used by formal oversight systems to investigate officers for their role in controversial use-of-force incidents. The chapter relies on two recent examples of smartphones used to document police brutality: the 2014 Eric Garner case and the 2020 George Floyd case. In many of the same ways as the Garner case, the Floyd case illustrates the multiple ways that smartphones can both expose police brutality and formally contribute to police accountability. The chapter concludes that the power of mediators such as the mainstream media outlets must be carefully considered when assessing the impact of smartphones on police brutality.
