David Letele: Buttabean Community food bank founder voices support for mandatory police body cameras

An Auckland community leader says mandatory police body cameras would help everyone.

David Letele is behind a petition calling for the change - a petition that's garnered nearly 10,000 signatures so far.

A 45 year-old man died a week ago at Auckland's Ōrere Point, after he and another person fled police. 

Faasala Samu Matue lost consciousness after being tasered and pepper-sprayed - when he threatened police and bit an officer’s hand.

Letele says body cameras are a no-brainer.

"These body cams - it's not just for the safety and accountability for the public, but it also keeps the police safe."

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Time is ten after five. Of course, a lot of
people will argue, you haven't had enough time to make
the changes, to get the the you know, make a
difference in people's lives. Yet certainly that's what people are
telling me on the text machine right now. It has
just gone ten minutes after five. Bridge Shave It Tally's
launched a petition calling for all police officers across the

(00:20):
country to wear body cameras while on duty. Comes after
the death of a man who was pepper sprayed last
Sunday trying to flee police. Video went viral on social
media and investigation under way at the moment. His family
have accused police of attacking him unnecessarily. Dave, tell you
the community leaders with us tonight.

Speaker 2 (00:39):
Hi, Dave, hey Ran, Thanks having me.

Speaker 1 (00:42):
How is your petition going?

Speaker 2 (00:44):
Yes, so far, so good. I think it's almost around
ten thousand signatures. And we just got to keep pushing forward,
you know, so soon people forget about this, but we can't.
We've got to keep pushing.

Speaker 1 (00:55):
The video looks bad, no denying that, but a lot
of people would say, well, you know, you go after
the police, you wave weapons around. I mean there's going
to be consequences.

Speaker 2 (01:07):
Yeah, but I mean I'm not here to argue that
what happened leading up to it, but the fact is
there was an excessive use of force. Right. I saw
the body today and I'd hate for that to be
my son making a mistake and jumping in a cash
of It's horrific. The injuries is being literally torn apart

(01:29):
from from head to toe, and you know, and these
these body cams, I mean, it's not just for the
safety and the accountability for the public, but it also
keeps the police safe. So I mean, it's just it's
just a no brainer. There's so many unanswered there's there's
no one's answering any questions on the family, and it's
just it's just such it's i mean, their life was wasted,

(01:52):
you know, there's.

Speaker 1 (01:55):
There's no doubt it's a tragedy and somebody is We
don't know how, we don't know what the cause of
death was yet all of that stuff. Police were also
injured in this, right.

Speaker 2 (02:04):
Yeah, Ron, And look, I don't want to, like I
put this petition down and then I quickly put another
post out on my Facebook saying this is not about
bashing the police. We work alongside many great police officers
with our work and BBM and also with Grace Foundation
as well as Corrections. It's not about bashing the police
at all, but it is about like it's just about
time we have to have this and the way our
society is going, I think this is going to be

(02:25):
more more regular thing, so it's just something that we
have to do, we have to invest in.

Speaker 1 (02:31):
All right, Dave Well, I appreciate you coming on the program.
Thank you very much for that. David Telly, who's a
community leader in Auckland. For more from Hither Duplassy Allen Drive,
listen live to news talks it'd be from four pm weekdays,
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