Pistol Cams keep cops honest

If a cop points a gun at you, remember to smile. No, not to keep the officer from pulling the trigger (though it couldn't hurt), but because you might be on camera. In an effort to address public concerns about police accountability, the sheriff's department SWAT team in Orange County, New York, recently started packing the PistolCam, a cigarette-pack-sized combination videocam, flashlight, and laser targeter that attaches to the gun barrel's underside. "A lot of people in urban settings believe police officers are recklessly gunning people down," says Terry Gordon, a former prison guard whose New York firm, Legend Technologies, developed the $695 device. "This will be a cost-effective tool for liability protection." The gadget starts recording whenever the gun is drawn. It can store an hour of video with audio, which is encrypted to prevent tampering by cops under investigation. The whole system couldn't be simpler — just point and shoot.