Many folks in the black community have to resort to making sure they have their receipts when it comes to interactions with police officers. There’s a reason why we even know the names Michael Brown or Philando Castile: recording devices.
You can tell Siri to remind you of an event or even when you want to be awakened. Imagine being able to tell it to record your interaction with law enforcement. Thanks to a modification to the app Shortcuts, iPhone users can now do just that.
The app allows one’s smartphone to perform an array of tasks through voice command. Robert Petersen invented a Shortcuts add-on called Police, which triggers recording for police encounters, WTVR reports.
Siri can now record police interactions when you get pulled over pic.twitter.com/vHeSpvxh9u
— NowThis (@nowthisnews) October 6, 2018
As soon as you’re pulled over, you can say, “Siri, I’m getting pulled over,” which will activate the app. It will discreetly send your location to a designated contact, record your interaction with the officer and send all of that footage to said contact.
“I have noticed in reading news articles and seeing reports on TV that in many cases you end up with police saying one thing happened and the citizen being pulled over saying another,” Petersen told USA TODAY. “And how do you determine truth? Sometimes the police have body cams, sometimes not, and even when they do it’s not always released in a timely manner.”
The app also immediately places the user’s iPhone in “Do Not Disturb” mode so they won’t receive any texts or alerts that could startle an officer who has their weapon drawn.
“When dealing with being pulled over and interacting with law enforcement, you want as little distraction as possible, and that includes music, bright screens and notifications coming in,” Petersen added. “You want to be focused on the encounter at hand and don’t want any unnecessary distraction to yourself or to law enforcement personnel.”
By the way, Android users can equip their phones with similar apps: ACLU Blue and I’m Getting Arrested!
Clutch. While we all know there are limits to what recordings can do, these apps will certainly provide an extra layer of security, and could very well make a difference in the courtroom.
